


Maid for Each Other

by hawaiigal52



Category: Ugly Betty
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-02-03
Updated: 2014-02-03
Packaged: 2018-01-11 00:23:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 52,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1166381
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hawaiigal52/pseuds/hawaiigal52
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Just a note of warning before you begin reading this. I attempted to 're-post' this story from Fanfiction. However, I somehow managed to only 'grab' the first 21 chapters before I deleted the story from that site, and I have only been able to find a few more of the remaining chapters scattered on the hard drive of my daughter's laptop (I had two computers crash on me in the middle of several family deaths and other fun stuff). So, while I do have some hope to find the 'missing' chapters on my older computer that I need to buy a new power cord for in order to access, I'm afraid this is as far as I have at the moment. I promise that at least by June if not sooner I will hopefully be able to find the end to this story!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Maid for Each Other

Title: Maid for Each Other  
Category: TV Shows » Ugly Betty  
Author: Betty the Bonita  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: M  
Genre: Humor/Romance  
Published: 11-23-12, Updated: 01-22-13  
Chapters: 40, Words: 92,854  
Chapter 1: Chapter 1  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 1  
Disclaimer: Ugly Betty is not mine. I am only writing a story based on it's characters.  
A/N: This is an idea I've had based on the JLo film, Maid in Manhattan (I was going to call it that) with lots of changes. I'm such a Rom/com nut, it's often where I draw my inspiration, although I do put my own Detty spin on it, of course.  
This is Detty-world but my plot means we'll be DEEP in A/U land. This little tale supposes that Bradford still saw Betty, but didn't immediately offer her the job at Mode working for Daniel, so she went back to Queen's defeated, and still unemployed. Many canon events will still occur (or have a slightly skewed twist). Hope you enjoy!  
Betty came home from her interview at Meade Publications, defeated. She sat at her kitchen table in Queens, eating ice cream. She re-assured her nephew, Justin that she was alright.  
The phone rang and Justin answered it, then handed it to Betty, "It's some cleaning company in Manhattan, AB. NYC Maids? They said they got your resume and they have a few jobs for you?"  
"Cleaning company? I didn't send my resume to any cleaning companies." Betty shot an evil glance at her sister, Hilda, who had just come into the room.  
Hilda shrugged, taking the ice cream from Betty as she went to answer the phone. "What? So, I sent your resume to a few places that I saw were looking for help in Manhattan. I know you want to work in the city. It's a job, Betty. And it pays really well, see what they want." She waved Betty encouragingly.  
Betty rolled her eyes, but answered, "Yes, this is Betty Suarez."  
Ignacio had heard what happened and he quietly chided his older daughter, "Hilda, you know it's Betty's dream to own her own magazine. We need to support her."  
Hilda, ever the practical one, "I know, papi, but Betty went to college, and now she's got to pay her dues a little before she just gets her dream job. I support her a hundred percent, but she's been looking for a while now, and we've got to all do whatever it takes to pay the bills.  
This is in the city, like she wants, and my friend who cleans for this company said the clients are really classy. So, who knows what kind of contacts she'll make from it. It could be a really good opportunity. There's nothing wrong with a classy maid service like this.  
The pay is great! I would have done it myself, but this place is so upscale, I was embarrassed to give them my resume. You've seen it. Betty hasn't really worked much, either, but she has her degree now and she knows how to talk to those people in Manhattan better than I do. She'll love it! You'll see."  
Betty hung up the phone, looking somewhat disheartened, but trying to sound cheerful, nonetheless. "They want me to come in and talk to the managers on Monday. But, they said if I've had any cleaning experience at all, I've got the job.  
They have an emergency for a high profile client and they want me to go ahead and start cleaning for the guy immediately. He needs someone to begin right away and he's kind of particular. I wasn't going to do it, but you're right, Hilda, it pays really well, and when I heard who it was for, I told them I'd do it."  
"Who?"  
"Daniel Meade."  
"Who's that?" Hilda asked.  
"Daniel Meade! Are you serious? AB, that's great! Fashion Buzz is always talking about what a man-whore he is and who he's been seen sleeping with, don't you watch the news, Mom?"  
"JUSTIN! First of all, that fashion gossip show is NOT the news. And please don't use that language, young man."  
Betty smiled at her sister and nephew, taking the ice cream tub back from Hilda and taking a bite and smiling before putting it back in the freezer, "Well, I don't care about his personal life. I just know that last name-Meade.  
I know his father, Bradford owns Meade Publications, the company I just got turned away from for my interview. The guy there wouldn't even talk to me. But if I become this Daniel Meade's maid, maybe I can talk him into giving me a second chance, eventually. I know a lot of times it's not what you know, but who you know. This will give me at least some kind of inside track."  
Later that night, Betty wore a pair of nice black slacks and had Justin help her pick out a simple white button down shirt to meet Daniel Meade at his Manhattan loft to give her the key and show her what he needed done.  
"You're going to meet some guy at his apartment at night, dressing up? I don't know that I like this idea, Betty. You heard what Justin said about the man. He's some kind of womanizer. He might be using this maid service to uh...seduce pretty young girls or something. Maybe I should go with you."  
Betty shook her head, "Papi, I'm not a child. I'll be fine. Besides, look at me. I have braces and glassed. Guys like this Daniel Meade are total players. He dates models and actresses. He's not going to hit on me. This is strictly business. At least, once he sees me, I'll be fine. Maybe if I looked like Hilda you'd have something to worry about."  
"You are beautiful, mijah! You're strong and independent. And smart, just like you're mother." He held her and patted her cheeks.  
She made a face, "Thanks, a lot, papi. You have to say I'm beautiful, because I'm your daughter. I know what I am. But, it's fine. I'll get these stupid braces off someday. I know I won't always be ugly. Mami was beautiful and Hilda is now, so I'm sure I'll grow out of my ugly duckling phase. It was no fun in school, especially middle school and high school being Ugly Betty, but at least I don't have to worry about getting goosed on the subway or hit on all the time. It's sort of my own personal taser gun. All guys have to do is look at my face and they leave me alone."  
"Betty! I hate to hear you talk like that about yourself, mijah. Those braces are just temporary, like you said. And then, you're going to have a beautiful smile, to match the rest of you. Well, good luck. Be careful. Here. Just in case the guy is a creep." He handed her a whistle.  
She laughed, hugging her father and kissing him on the cheek, "Thanks, papi. If Daniel Meade hits on ME, I'd say he deserves getting a whistle blown in his ear! Besides, I'm sure he's not really that bad. Those shows are usually hyped up, since sex sells. Maybe for Hilda's sake, try not to let Justin watch that so much. You and your telanovellas are almost as bad, though, dad."  
He smiled, and shrugged, "I know. I can't help it. I started watching them with your mother in the hospital and now...I'm hooked. Don't work too hard. I know you're going to get a real job soon, Betty. One like you deserve. You're so smart, they should be lined up to hire you! You graduated at the top of your class, you..."  
She shook her head, as she grabbed her coat and bag with work clothes, in case she would be actually cleaning tonight. "I've got to go, papi. I know, I know. Thanks for your support and encouragement. I'll be fine.  
This is like Hilda said, I've got to pay my dues first. She's right; we need the money. Lots of actors work as bartenders or waitresses before they hit it big. So what if I have to be a maid until I get my break in publishing? I'll see you later."  
Betty hurried off, to find the Soho loft she had been given the address for and made sure she had a copy of her resume with her in her purse, just in case.  
She stood outside the apartment, knocking. She was twenty minutes early. She had wanted to make sure she made a good impression. There was never an excuse good enough for being late to an interview.  
Betty knew that although she still had been told by the maid service that they were desperate enough for help that they would hire her, she still had to convince Daniel Meade that she could be a good maid for him, personally in order for him to hire her.  
Even if she got other cleaning clients, Daniel was the main reason she had agreed to put her literary aspirations on hold to become a maid in the first place. She couldn't even get them to keep the appointment she had managed to make for an interview coming through the front door at Meade Publications, and her heartfelt speech to the goofy guy at the front desk didn't seem to make an impression on him, either.  
But Betty Suarez didn't give up easily. So, by golly, she'd get in the back door, as the maid of the owner's son, if she had to. As long as she eventually got where she wanted, she didn't really care how she got there.  
She smiled as a good-looking man in his early thirties opened the door. He was only wearing boxers and she couldn't help opening her eyes rather widely. He looked slightly out of breath. Oh, God, she thought. I'm early and I've just interrupted him having sex! Great way to make a first impression, she thought. Oh, well, here goes. She threw her chest out, trying to ignore his amazing naked upper body.  
She smiled, and he had a mildly amused expression, upon seeing her braces, "Good evening, Mr. Meade? I'm Betty Suarez. I believe NYC Maids said you needed someone to start right away? They said you wanted to interview me personally before you gave me your key. I do have a copy of my recent background check. In fact, I am definitely someone who can be trusted implicitly. I can certainly understand your need for discretion, though and not to just want to leave your key lying around for some random maid you haven't even met."  
He put out his hand, smiling at her babbling, "Nice to meet you, Betty, was it? I'm Daniel Meade. Why don't you come in and have a seat on the couch. I'm sorry for my uh...appearance. I forgot they said they were sending someone tonight. Just make yourself at home. Give me a minute. I'll be right back, okay?"  
She shook his hand and smiled back, then went to sit down and wait for his return. Why did she always babble like an idiot when she was nervous? He seemed nice, she thought. Not really what she expected. His loft was messy, that was for sure. She could see he definitely needed a maid. She decided to wait till he knew her a bit better and was more comfortable with her before she mentioned his father's company.  
He may not know anything about publishing. Maybe he ran his own company. She had no idea what this guy did, really, other than the fact that he was Bradford Meade's son and Justin said he was a player of some kind. And he was a major hottie, of course.  
She smiled, suddenly wishing she had her braces scheduled to be off sooner than a year from now. But she got them while she was in college, making money to help her father pay for them by working at a cat hospital.  
Daniel went into his bedroom, where Amanda, the receptionist he was having an on again off again fling with was getting dressed. He grabbed his pants and got a shirt to put on, "Hey, Amanda. Sorry, we're going to have to cut this short tonight. The maid service sent over the new girl and I need to show her what I need done and give her my key. You understand."  
She rolled her eyes, somewhat upset, "So, is she hotter than me? You should have told me you needed a maid, Daniel. I could always put on a little French maid's outfit for you and dust your uh...blinds or something." She smiled, seductively as she finished dressing.  
He grinned, holding her and kissing her forehead, "Hey, you know we're not...exclusive or anything. This is just for fun, right? You said, no strings. Besides, when you see her, well, believe me, Amanda. You don't need to be jealous. It's not that kind of maid service. I actually need someone to clean and she will. You on the other hand, well, we both know no cleaning would get done. Do you even clean your own place?"  
She giggled, "Of course I do-ish. Fine, then. I'll leave you and your new maid to dust each other, Daniel. Have fun! You don't know what you're missing, here. I may not clean for you, but I can definitely play dirty!" she turned as she went out the bedroom door and flashed him, showing him a parting glance at her bra and panties.  
He shook his head, smiling at her, but followed to see her reaction to Betty. Sure enough, she laughed as she walked to Betty and shook her hand.  
"Hey, so you really are Daniel's new maid, huh? I'm Amanda, his...friend. Well, have fun cleaning up after this guy, honey. He's a very dirty boy!" She laughed as she left Betty staring at her not knowing exactly what to say. As soon as Amanda left, Daniel shook his head and came to sit down next to Betty. She sat back down, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to come so early. I wasn't sure how long it would take me to get here and I didn't know how good the direction were. But, I've evidently come at a bad time. I could come back early in the morning if that's better for you, Mr. Meade."  
He shook his head, leaning back against the couch, watching her discomfort in amusement. "It's fine, Betty. She doesn't stay the night or anything. We just have a sort of casual relationship. Nothing serious. She's sweet, and fun to be with, but Amanda keeps trying to get ahead at Mode and she thinks if she gets in my pants that's all it's going to take to get me to hire her."  
"What's Mode? Where you work?"  
He nodded, "Yeah. Oh, I guess you never heard of it. My father owns Meade Publishing and he just asked me to take over for Fey Sommers, the Editor-in-chief there since she died. That's where I met Amanda. Now she thinks she can sweet talk me into hiring her at Mode as my assistant or something, since my dad sort of had a fit and made me fire my last assistant."  
"What does an assistant do? Is she qualified?" Betty's mind was racing now with the possibilities. But, given Daniel's obvious reluctance to hire Amanda as his assistant and he was sleeping with her, she had her doubts about trying to 'sweet talk' him into considering her for the position.  
He shrugged, getting up to go to the kitchen, "I don't know. Assists, I guess. Are you hungry, Betty? I'm starved. I think I've got..." he opened his refrigerator and pulled out carton of Chinese take out, but looked at it somewhat dubiously. Betty made a face.  
"I wouldn't recommend eating that, Daniel. Do you like pizza? I can order you a great pie that's only a couple of blocks from here. They have super fast delivery and it won't make you sick like that will, I promise you. My treat."  
Daniel looked at Betty somewhat sympathetically, "Thanks, that's sweet, Betsy. But...this has to be a strictly professional relationship. I've sort of had a problem finding a good maid that actually got any cleaning done, as you can see. I'm not very good at cleaning up after myself. I..."  
Betty had been picking up empty containers as he they went to the kitchen and throwing them into his trash can. She tied the bag at the top and gave him a somewhat serious look, "It's Betty, remember? Look, I don't mean to be blunt, but I wasn't coming on to you by offering to buy us a pizza. I need this job.  
I have a Bachelor's degree and I'm obviously overqualified to be your maid and it sounds like I'd even be overqualified for that assistant job at Mobe. But some of us aren't lucky enough to have a father who can just give us a great job we haven't earned. Bottom line, I can clean your loft and do a great job and obviously you won't be distracting me from doing it by hitting on me, so do we have a deal?" She stuck out her hand.  
He smiled and shook her hand, "Deal, Betty Suarez. Wow, you don't fool around, do you? And I didn't mean that sexually, I promise. Look, I'm sorry if I jumped to the wrong conclusion. It's just that..."  
"You're a rich, hot guy who's used to women throwing themselves at you to get what they want out of you. Well, I can't say I don't have my own agenda, but believe me, it's not to 'get into your pants', Daniel, I assure you. Now, what do you want on your pizza?"  
Chapter 2: Chapter 2  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 2  
A/N: It may seem like things are moving fast right now, in some ways, but don't get your hopes up too much just yet. Remember, they just met! Although I certainly intend to heat up the Detty chemistry exponentially by Season 1 canon standards, we're certainly not there yet! Patience, those of you who expect ALL my stories to be M-rated right out of the gate! LOL!

The night flew by in an instant. After sharing their pizza, Betty and Daniel talked easily and laughed, as if they had known each other forever. There was never a lull in the conversation. Although they seemingly had nothing in common, the two found some kind of bond almost immediately.  
Daniel felt like he could be himself around this girl like no other woman he had ever met. Possibly because they weren't playing mind games with one another. He found out that Betty knew a lot about magazines. She admitted she was trying to get into the field, but stopped short of mentioning that she had applied (unsuccessfully) for a job at his father's firm earlier that morning.  
He, on the other hand, didn't seem to know much about magazines, but knew quite a bit more about fashion than Betty. She hadn't even had a chance to change into her 'work clothes', jeans and a tee shirt, but still managed to do a lot of cleaning, without thinking as they talked. She finished straightening up in the kitchen after they ate, loaded the dishwasher, and cleaned the counters, picked up the mess in the living room and was headed for the bedroom and bathroom when he stopped her. "Uh, wow, it's really late. I'm so sorry, you...you didn't have to clean all this time while we were talking, Betty. You're great. I didn't even notice what you were doing, really, but the place already looks a hundred percent better. Needless to say, you're hired!  
But, I hate to tell you, I'll probably have things back as bad as they were in a few days, so...do you think you could come three times a week? Does that work with your schedule? Monday, Wednesday and Friday? And I'll definitely include tonight at overtime whatever your fee is, since you basically worked almost all night! Plus, bought ME pizza. Thanks. And, sorry about the misunderstanding before."  
She felt almost sad to leave. She had been having such a great time, talking to this man, who she barely knew. She had never met anyone she felt so comfortable with, so instantly at ease before. It was strange and a little exciting. She felt as if she had opened a door into a whole new world for herself.  
Daniel had been so open and kind with her. He didn't treat her like many nice looking guys did, with contempt or disgust, or as if she didn't exist because she wasn't conventionally beautiful. He listened to her and teased her and treated her like her opinion mattered.  
In fact, she had suggested he should go ahead and consider hiring Amanda to be his assistant, but that he should let her know it had to be strictly professional. He had rolled his eyes when she made the suggestion. "What? Oh, I get it. You don't think you can keep your hands to yourself with her, is that it? I understand. She is really pretty. And sassy. I like her. She seems smart."  
He raised his eyebrows, then laughed. She caught on immediately.  
"What? What's that look for? She's not smart?"  
He smiled, "You think you know my looks already?" He shook his head, drinking some milk out of the carton, and smiling at her as she followed him into the kitchen and took out a clean glass from the dishwasher as she began to unload it, putting dishes away without thinking.  
He took the glass and poured some, but handed it to her, then shrugged, "No, I mean, Amanda's...not stupid, don't get me wrong.  
But, I think it's fair to say she can be easily confused and manipulated. There's this gay guy she's 'besties' with that she's  
always talking about and he sounds like he's the brains behind their little team. He works for Wilhelmina Slater. She's uh...well, kind of a mean person, to use your nicer terminology."  
She smiled as she took the glass of milk from him, "You have other not so nice terminology for her, I take it, Daniel?"  
He laughed, "Definitely!"  
She couldn't believe they had started out the evening with her calling him Mr. Meade and now she already felt comfortable enough to tease him. But still, he was her boss and she needed to 'remember her place' so to speak.  
She didn't want her big mouth to get her fired already, before she had had a chance to ask Daniel (very diplomatically) if he knew of any positions at some of his father's twenty-two publications that she might apply for and possibly use him as a good reference. Of course, all that would have to wait.  
She didn't want him to think she was just 'using him' like so many girls seemed to constantly do. She genuinely liked the guy. He was charming, without even trying. He was sort of self-effacing in his humor and witty, yet still managed to exude a very sexy sense of self-confidence.  
She supposed that came with being incredibly good-looking, and well off and ...all that came with that sort of life. Yet, she still sensed a sadness behind his eyes. She hoped as they got to know each other, he might share with her even more to give a hint what he had gone through to make him seem sad. It was usually when his father came up that she noticed it.  
Perhaps a strained relationship between father and son. Of course, she had not shared with Daniel about her mother's death or her sister's teenage pregnancy or any really 'heavy' issues as yet, either. Still, just talking about everything from music and movies to living in New York, and all kinds of subjects in between, they had managed to talk for almost five hours! How was that possible?  
She gasped, glancing at her cell phone, seeing several missed messages from her father and sister. She almost ran out the door, "I'm sorry, Daniel. I've got to go...I didn't realize it was so late."  
He hurried to stop her. "Betty, wait. Let me call for a town car. It's too late for you to take the subway. It's the least I can do for making you work all night while I talked your ear off." She didn't know why she blushed when he smiled. But, after all, he did have a very charming smile. She could see why women were so attracted to him.  
She nodded, "Thank you so much. That's very kind of you. So, I have the key, and I'll see you on Wednesday. Do you want me to come during the day, while you're at work? Oh, by the way, good luck, with your meeting tomorrow. I mean, later today. You'd better get some rest. I hope things go well at Mobe, I mean Mode!"  
She had shown her complete ignorance of the well-known fashion magazine, perhaps, but she knew many of the other publications owned by Meade quite well and Daniel had been very impressed with how smart and quick she was. He told her he felt as if he should be taking notes from her. Again, she had felt her cheeks flush when he complimented her, in spite of herself.  
As soon as Daniel closed the door to get a few hours sleep before his big day, she called her father, impressed that he hadn't called the police out of worry. "BETTY! Mijah, thank God, you're okay! Where are you? What happened? Did that man hurt you or something? Where have you been all night?"  
"Working. He just has a weird schedule. His place was a mess and I spent all night cleaning it up. We were both hungry and he's sort of a night owl, so we ate some pizza together. I'm fine, papi. I'm sorry if I worried you, but since it was technically an interview, I forgot I had turned off my phone when I went there and I guess I totally lost track of time, that's all.  
He felt really bad about it and is paying me overtime, plus, I'm riding home in his town car right now. He was a very nice man. I think Justin's silly show is exaggerated. I mean, he does seem like the player type, I guess, but he's also just a normal guy, and really nice."  
"You said he was nice twice, mijah. What do you mean, he was nice? So, he didn't...try anything with you? How dirty was his apartment if it took you all night to clean it?"  
"Papi. Don't start. He was just nice, and no, of course he didn't try anything. He has a girlfriend. Sort of. I met her. She was pretty and nice enough, I guess. We were just talking for a long time and lost track of time. You know how interviews go sometimes if you hit it off with the person.  
We got along really well. I think this is going to be a great opportunity for me. Really open some doors. Hilda was right. I do have to pay my dues. But, this is definitely a step in the right direction. I can feel it. I'll be home soon. There's no traffic. Sorry I worried you, papi. I love you."  
"Te quero, mijah. I love you, too. Betty. I'll see you when you get home." She knew as she hung up that her father would be waiting up till she came back home safe and sound. He was just that kind of a dad. She was lucky and she knew it.  
She smiled, suddenly wondering if perhaps Daniel had been embarrassed about her cleaning his bedroom or bathroom and that's why he suddenly stopped her and sent her home.  
She couldn't help but wonder about all Justin had said about him and after all, he had first greeted her in his underwear, before they had even known each other. She felt herself blushing again, picturing him. Maybe she needed to try and erase that image of her new boss from her memory banks.  
Yeah, good luck with that, she thought, giggling to herself as the driver pulled up to her house. "We're here, Miss. Mr. Meade just text-ed me to say if you need me to, he'll be happy to have me pick you up Wednesday afternoon. I'll be at your disposal, since he won't be needing me till later that evening."  
"Thank you, uh...sorry, I didn't get your name. I'm Betty."  
The man, who looked to be in his early forties, with graying hair and a kindly smile turned and held out his hand, "Nice to meet you, Miss Betty. I'm Mick. Mick Jefferson. So, should I come here to pick you up Wednesday, then? Around three-thirty?"  
She figured where was the harm in getting a ride to work if your new boss offered? It was probably just a one-time courtesy since he felt badly for keeping her out so late the first night.  
After a surprisingly short question and answer session from her father, she crawled upstairs to note that it was now close to two in the morning. She could hardly believe she had been talking to Daniel for almost five hours. Seeming to be worried she had made a grave error, Hilda came in to Betty's room, somewhat sheepishly, "Knock, knock.  
Listen, mami, I'm really sorry. I really shouldn't have submitted your resume to that place without clearing it with you first. I know I try to tell you what to do sometimes, but just because I'm your big sister, doesn't mean I'm smarter.  
I had no idea the guy would work you this late! Was he out with some girl the whole time and he made you clean his place all night? I feel really terrible, Betty." She came and sat on the edge of Betty's bed while she finished getting under the covers and put on her headgear.  
Betty smiled and Hilda laughed slightly, it always startled her seeing her little sister wearing the contraption. She was surprised to see Betty seemed happy and excited. "I let you apologize, because you're right; Hilda, you should have asked me first.  
But, you know what? I'm glad you didn't. Because I would have had my nose up in the air, although I don't know why. I mean, I cleaned up in a cat hospital last summer, at least this is cleaning up after a human. Well, Daniel is pretty messy, but..." She laughed to herself.  
"Actually, this turned into a good thing, Hilda. I really like Daniel. He's a nice guy. He's very messy and a big player, but...he has a brain and a heart, too. He and I really got along. We were talking until after twelve-thirty, and I was just cleaning as we talked, kind of like I do at home.  
I didn't even notice I was working, we were having such a nice conversation, you know? And before you ask, yes, he's hot, but he has a girlfriend, well, probably several, but one that was there when I first got there, and I think I interrupted them, you know, because he answered the door in his underwear.  
But, she left right away. She seemed nice enough, I guess. She was typical, blonde, thin, pretty. The type he goes for, I guess. But he said she is trying to use him to get a job as his assistant because his father made him fire the last one he was sleeping with and I told him he should give Amanda a chance, just tell her it has to be strictly professional, but I don't think he thought either of them could do that."  
Hilda smiled, raising one eyebrow, "Wow, you sure know an awful lot about this guy after only one date."  
Betty flushed bright red, "Hilda, knock it off. Stop teasing me. You know as well as I do, it wasn't a date. It was just business. I mean, we were friendly, but of course he's not going to be interested in...well, this." She waved her hand over herself. "I was lucky to even get Walter, or at least, I thought I was, until I found out he cheated on me last night."  
Hilda patted her sister sympathetically on the back, "I know. That slut, Gina Gambaro! Are you sure you don't want me to teach her a lesson, Betty? Nobody messes with my sister!"  
Betty smiled at Hilda's overprotective attitude. One thing she knew, she could always count on her family to 'have her back', no matter what, something she sensed Daniel may have been lacking in the way he referred to his family as 'messed up' and 'chaotic'.  
She yawned and told her sister goodnight and thanks again for the help with finding a job and slipped off to sleep.  
The next day, she woke to an empty house, finding Justin had already gone to school and her father and Hilda were both gone, as well. She took her time, enjoying having the house to herself for a change. She ate 'brunch', since it was almost noon when she woke up, a very unusual thing for Betty, who was usually an early riser.  
She straightened up the house, did some laundry, watched some of her papi's silly telanovella, then finally decided to take a nice, long, relaxing bath. She put on some music and stretched out, immensely enjoying one of the few times in quite some time that she could remember having the bathroom all to herself. She heard a muffled sound through her earphones that almost sounded like some kind of knocking downstairs. She hollered loudly, "Just come on in, guys. I'm upstairs, enjoying myself."  
Daniel furrowed his brow at that last little bit of information from his new employee. He had had a terrible day at his first day at Mode, and was craving a friendly ear. The little rally the troops speech he had planned had been interrupted by Wilhelmina Slater, the woman who clearly hated him and wanted his job. She had completely humiliated him and he really felt like talking to Betty, so he thought about asking her if she wanted to get something to eat.  
He didn't have a lot of friends in his life that he could trust, especially women that he could talk to right now. His mother was one of his only allies, it seemed, and she was in rehab again at the moment.  
His one good male friend, Becks Scott was out of the country, photographing either something that growled or perhaps sleeping with someone that did, he couldn't keep track. But, this felt weird, going into her house. He tried to let her know it was him. She had said 'guys', so clearly she was expecting her family or roommates, perhaps?  
"Uh, Betty, it's Daniel Meade. I wanted to see if you had eaten yet. Maybe pay you back for buying my dinner last night. Hello? Where are you? OH!"  
Chapter 3: Chapter 3  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 3  
"Oh, uh, wow. I'm really sorry, Betty. I shouldn't have just come in like that. The door was open and I heard you say to come in, but…I…I think I'm just going to go now." Daniel was aware that HE was the one who was babbling now, but he didn't know quite know what else to do. Not that he hadn't seen a naked woman before; quite the contrary.  
He simply never expected to see his new maid that way, especially after having just met her the night before, and now, he had gone and messed things up, by walking into her house, and catching her coming out of her tub naked.  
For her part, Betty seemed to be in shock. "DANIEL! Oh, my God! Uh…what…" She turned bright red, grabbing the towel he had handed her, as he beat a hasty retreat back down the stairs. She hesitated, then called out after him, once she had secured the towel around her, "Wait. Daniel, is…everything okay? What did you say before?"  
He stopped, still looking away, not wanting to stare at her, dripping in her towel. "I…it's nothing. I'm REALLY sorry, Betty. Believe me, I didn't mean…to…uh. This is embarrassing."  
"For you? Funny, it seems to me, we're having a contest here. First, you come to your door in your underwear. And you barely seem to blink an eye. Now, you figure you can one up me, so you decide to come here and catch me completely naked. And you seemed awfully worried about me cleaning your bedroom. How bad was it?"  
She didn't know where she got the courage to get over her shyness and embarrassment enough to tease him right now. In fact, Walter had been the only guy to see Betty anywhere close to how Daniel had just seen her. But, somehow she knew that he really needed to talk and she wasn't going to let a little embarrassment mess things up for them.  
Obviously, he hadn't come there, knowing she would be naked and with her headphones, so that she couldn't tell it was him, and not her sister coming home. Justin was going with her father to a school meeting and she thought her sister was simply coming home from Herba-luxe with her friend to get changed before going out.  
She would have been blushing if Justin or her father had come home seeing her like that, but to have her new, cute boss walk in on her? It was a nightmare. Still, she had endured worse. At least he hadn't pointed and made fun of her, like in school, she thought, remembering a terrible bully named Kimmie Keegan, who had called her 'granny pants' and it stuck.  
In fact, he seemed quite flustered. But not repulsed. She found it almost endearing, that the womanizer was embarrassed to have walked in on her naked. Even though she was mortified, she found it somehow 'humanized' or equalized them, like when they told her in speech class to picture everyone in their underwear. "Daniel. Did something happen at the meeting today? How did it go?"  
He tried to look only into her eyes as he came a few steps back away from the door, and towards the staircase. She forgot for a moment she was only wearing a towel. He started to tell her about Wilhelmina, about his terrible day, when the door swung open, and Hilda came bounding in with her friend, Sarah from Herba-luxe.  
She stopped and raised an eyebrow at Daniel, "Hello, handsome! What are YOU selling? I'll take a dozen of whatever!" She smiled, flirtatiously.  
Betty called down, "Hilda, that's Daniel Meade, my new boss. Daniel, this is my sister, Hilda."  
She put her hand to her mouth, "Oh, I'm so sorry, hi! I was just being silly. It's good to meet you, Mr. Meade." She shook his hand.  
He smiled, half-heartedly, "It's Daniel. Hi, Hilda. Nice to meet you."  
Then she looked back up the stairs at Betty, "Uh, Betty? Don't you think you should put some clothes on?"  
Betty nodded, "Right. Daniel, I'll be right down, okay?"  
He mumbled, "Okay, sure," although he still seemed somewhat mortified with the situation. Hilda introduced him to Sarah, who flirted with him and giggled. After only a few minutes, Betty came downstairs, dressed in jeans and a tee-shirt, wearing her hair in a high pony-tail, since, as usual, she couldn't do anything with it after getting it wet. Besides, she liked that wearing it that way made her look a bit more like Hilda.  
"Hey, Daniel. So, did I hear you say something about paying me back for the pizza? No place fancy, though, right?"  
He shook his head and they said goodbye to Hilda and Sarah, and headed towards the town car. He looked down at the sidewalk. She stopped, "Daniel, look, it's…fine. Yes, it was embarrassing, but I'll live. The door was open; I told you to come in. It's not like you snuck in or anything. Besides, believe me, compared to how much I got tortured in school, this was like a three point oh on the Richter scale as far as mortification goes."  
He liked the way she seemed determined to put him at ease, in spite of how embarrassed she must have been. He could already tell Betty was hardly the kind of girl who went around flashing guys, unlike many of the women he knew. Although, he had to admit, from what he saw (and that was a lot), she certainly didn't have anything to hide.  
The girl was built like a porn star, yet for some reason, she seemed shy about it. The jeans she wore were flattering, but not nearly as tight as he was used to girls wearing. The tee shirt showed off her curves somewhat, but she had a big, puffy, blue coat over everything that completely hid her figure.  
He couldn't quite figure this girl out. He didn't know when he'd met a woman so determined to hide her body, especially not when it was such a good one. Most of the girls Daniel knew were completely the opposite.  
Finally, he spoke, as he opened the car door for her to get in. "Betty, I can't tell you how sorry I am to have invaded your privacy like that. I just had such a crappy day at work and I couldn't wait to unload on you again, I guess I wasn't really thinking. I hope I didn't make you feel so uncomfortable that we can't become friends. I…guess, since my brother died, especially, I don't have that many friends. I have one guy I met in college, but he's a photographer and out of the country a lot. My mom and I are fairly close, but…well; she's got some health problems. Sounds pretty pathetic, huh? We just met and already I'm dumping my 'poor little rich boy' problems on you. I'm so…"  
"Daniel, I swear, if you apologize one more time! Its fine, I promise! I understand. If I didn't have my sister to talk to, I wouldn't have any friends right now, either. Where are we going? Are you sure I'm okay wearing this?" She really didn't want him taking her to some high class restaurant, with her wearing jeans. Not that she had anything much to wear at home that would have been suitable for a super 'fancy' restaurant, anyway.  
He seemed to finally relax, and smiled, "You're fine, don't worry. This place is nice, but not fancy. You look great. Although, I think I might have a coat at Mode you could trade your parka in for, unless you're going ice fishing later in Alaska." He teased.  
She pretended to be insulted, looking down at her coat, "Hey, I like this coat. It's really warm. It cuts the wind."  
He nodded, sucking on his lower lip, and smirking, "I'm sure it is. It's beautiful. Great color. I like blue. It makes my eyes pop."  
She laughed, "Do you want to borrow it? Although it might make you look like a pimp or something."  
"Yeah, I'm good, thanks. Believe it or not, wool is pretty warm, too. Not as warm as…uh latex, though, I'm sure." He pretended to 'read' the label of her coat.  
She rolled her eyes, knowing he was making fun of her lack of fashion sense, as well as trying to avoid the issue he had been upset enough about to come all the way to Queens to talk to her, "Well, not everyone can afford designer clothes, Mr. Editor-in-chief of Mode!  
So, Daniel. What happened today that got you so worked up that you had to come talk to me right away?" She was still trying to ignore the fact that he had actually seen her naked right now, wondering what he was thinking. She knew he must have been very upset when he came to talk to her.  
"I…well, the meeting went terrible! I had just started talking and that Wilhelmina I told you about, the 'mean' lady who wants my job came in late, interrupting me and handed me some stupid crystal thing with my name engraved on it."  
"That doesn't sound so bad. She gave you a present? Maybe she was trying to reach out to you, Daniel."  
He shook his head, "No, it was a dig at me. It said, 'Danny'. I told you, I HATE being called Danny. For one thing, it's what my brother used to call me. I never let anyone call me that. She knows that. She was just trying to emasculate me. Then, she completely took over the meeting.  
She said Fabia has to sign off on our first layout. I need to come up with something that's really going to impress the woman. Then, she dismissed everybody like I wasn't even there. It was humiliating! She made me feel like a kid or something."  
Betty thought for a minute, "Well, what do you know about Fabia cosmetics?"  
He seemed surprised, "You've heard of them?"  
She ruffled, "I am a girl, Daniel. I do use makeup sometimes. Besides, my mother used Fabia. They've been around a while. My sister sells Herba-luxe. But, I remember sitting at my mother's vanity, trying on her Fabia lipstick when I was a little girl, playing dress up with her pearls." She fingered the necklace he noticed she wore both times he had seen her, with a far-away look.  
He said gently, "Can I ask, what happened to your mom? She uh…passed away, I take it?"  
She nodded, trying to push back the tears, "Yep. She died of cancer, three years ago. It doesn't seem like it's been that long already. I still miss her very much. She gave me this necklace. I always wear it to remind me of her."  
He smiled and nodded, looking at it, "Yeah, it's a replica of one Ann Boleyn wore, I think, isn't it? It's very pretty. It suits you, Betty." They were quiet for a moment, both lost in their own thoughts. Suddenly, he grinned, "We're here."  
She looked and saw a Thai restaurant in mid-town that she had mentioned the night before she really liked. She smiled, "Wow, a man who actually listens! No wonder the girls are all over you, Daniel." She couldn't be sure, but she could swear he had turned almost as red as he had when he walked in on her in the bath.  
He opened the door for her and led her inside. They were seated at a table in the back and started talking comfortably again. First, about losing someone you loved and how hard it was getting past. Daniel shared that he went to Alex's grave every Sunday and talked to his big brother. Betty nodded, admitting she did the same to her mother's grave. "I go there when I'm really having a problem sometimes and talk to her like she's still here. I know that sounds crazy, but…I really miss her, even though it's been three years.  
Don't get me wrong, I love my papi, too. We're a really close family. But, it's tough for a girl not to have her mother. I think sometimes that's why I…well; I'm not into dressing up, acting girly as much. I feel like I missed out on some big ritual moments with my mom. I know it's why Hilda…" she stopped herself, suddenly realizing she was oversharing.  
He seemed interested, though, "Go ahead, what about Hilda? She seemed nice. You're lucky you and your sister are so close, Betty. Me and Alex loved each other, but we were really competitive. I guess it's just a guy thing. But, he could do no wrong as far as my dad was concerned. I sort of get tired of hearing how great Alex was and what a screw up I am, you know?  
That's why I really need to do well on this job. To prove to him I'm not a total waste. I did blow a lot of money, though. I went through my trust fund and now, I can't keep expecting my old man to bail me out. I want to prove I can do this; that I'm not a total failure. It doesn't come as easily for me as it did for Alex, though. I mean, I know fashion, a little.  
I know who the designers are and what sells, and what looks good. But, I don't have the killer instinct for the business side of things like Alex did. He gets that from Dad. I suppose that's why Alex was always his golden boy. They're more alike than he and I ever were. I think I'm more like my mom. Wow, I can't believe I'm telling you all this. You're so easy to talk to, Betty. Thanks for listening to me blab again. You should become a counselor or something."  
"I'm just surprised, I guess."  
"Surprised?" He looked at her, seeming to be able to read her thoughts, somehow. "You mean; that rich people have problems, too? Yeah, it sucks. Money really doesn't buy happiness. Who knew, huh?"  
She blushed slightly, "Well, yeah, I guess that is sort of what I was thinking. Of course you still have problems. You have yours and I have mine. I'm trying really hard to fight with my father's HMO. They are telling me he's a hundred years old and dead or something. Government!"  
He laughed, "Well, IS your father that old?"  
She started laughing, as well, "No. I don't think so. If he is, he looks really good for his age."  
Daniel seemed to have a thought. "Betty, listen, I know you just started with NYC Maids and all, but…maybe I could see if there's a job for you at Mode. I'd hire you as my assistant, but…"  
She shrugged, looking down at her coat, "I know. I don't look like a person who should work at a fashion magazine. They wouldn't even…" She stopped, not ready to tell him she had already applied there and been rejected.  
She couldn't bear to have Daniel think she was using him, like all the other women; like Amanda. She felt guilty, hoping that's not what he thought. She did like him. She wanted to be his friend. To listen to him tell her about his problems.  
"No, it's not that. I just know you'd probably be bored at Mode, I mean Mobe." He teased. "But, there are twenty-two magazines…what am I telling you this for? You seem to know more than I do about my father's company. I can't believe you haven't already applied at Meade with your knowledge of magazines and your drive and intelligence, Betty. I'm going to…"  
Daniel squinted at her, seeming to look at her through some different kind of lens. She raised her eyebrow, as he took away her spring onion she had been wrinkling her nose at and put it on his plate.  
Without saying a word, they seemed to know what the other was thinking, both able to read the other's body language as if it were something innate in each of them.  
"What? Why are you looking at me so weird, Daniel? Like I'm a science project or something."  
He shrugged, "No, but…well, let me go talk to Christina McKinney at Mode. Maybe she can help. She's the seamstress there and she's a miracle worker."  
"Miracle worker? What does that mean? Who needs a miracle? Me? Daniel…what are you thinking?"

 

Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 4  
It was almost seven-thirty when the town car drove up to the Meade building. Betty felt just as nervous as she had the previous morning, going there for her interview that never happened. She looked at Daniel, unsure of what he had in mind exactly.  
He grinned, and grabbed her hand, "Come on, Betty. Christina is going to meet us in The Closet.  
In the meantime, tell me more about that idea you had for Fabia. What you said before about remembering when you played dress up and put on your mom's Fabia lipstick? That's great! I love it."  
She shrugged, "I was just saying, I bet if you do some research, you'll find that Fabia's older customers are loyal to her products and now they have children, so you can appeal to that whole demographic of mothers AND their daughters. Wow her with some numbers and give her some heartfelt visuals of a mom and daughter, sitting at a vanity like I used to with my mom."  
"Do you have a picture of you and your mom, doing that? You playing dress up? If we use it, you'll get a little money if she goes for it."  
She nodded, "I have one."  
"Great. Remind me, and we'll get it tonight when I drop you back home. Okay, here we go."  
"Daniel, I have one question, but you've got to promise me not to laugh."  
"Sure, what is it?"  
"What's the closet?"  
He smiled, but didn't laugh, merely, pointed her down the hall, where Christina was grabbing several outfits and placing them out, looking at them. She smiled when she saw Betty and stuck out her hand, "Hello, there, luv! You're Betty, right?"  
Betty smiled back and shook her hand warmly, "Yes, I'm Betty Suarez. How are you? You're Christina? The 'miracle worker'? "  
"Right! I'm Christina McKinney. Daniel here tells me you need some rags and that you've got a very voluptuous body to highlight. Unfortunately, all the clothes I have here are mostly for tiny little toothpick hanger 'girls', and I use the term loosely. Most of their bodies look more like twelve year old boys.  
But, I can see, you're a real woman. And real women like us have curves. Actually, Wilhelmina has a few herself; so I've learned to whip a mean stitch here and there to the designer sizes, and she's none the wiser.  
I'm sure she knows what I'm doing, actually, but she'd never admit it, at least not to the likes of me, her lowly seamstress. Alright, enough chit chat, now get in there and off with yer clothes."  
"Excuse me?" Betty looked at her like she was crazy, but Christina shoved her behind the curtain and handed her a red dress and black jacket. "Here, this will be really tight, but don't you fret about that, darlin.  
I can make it work, so no worries. Just come on out when you've managed to squeeze into it and I'll make note of where I need to alter it for those great curves of yours."  
"Okkkay." Betty looked a little hesitant, but took the dress and jacket in with her.  
When Betty went in, Christina looked at Daniel suspiciously, "This girl doesn't seem to be your usual type, Daniel. This is a nice girl, why don't you leave her alone? Unless you really fancy her…"she looked at him with a slight twinkle in her eye."  
He furrowed his brow at the Scottish woman who knew him and his family all too well, it seemed. "Unless what? And I don't have a 'type', Christina. Betty's just a sweet girl I met. She's a friend, that's all. She's really smart, but she's been forced to work as a maid. It's a waste of her talent and intelligence, though. She just needs a little… polish. I though you could help."  
"Friend, huh? Like the little blonde at the front desk is your friend?"  
He looked guilty, "Amanda is…nice, but she just wants to get ahead."  
"I see, so she's using you, eh? Is that it? There's no using going on on your part, then?" She crossed her arms and looked at Daniel, accusatorily.  
"Christina, mind your own business for once, will you please?"  
She shrugged, "Of course, Daniel. Although, I suppose since I'm mindin my own business, you wouldn't want to know what I heard about Miss Slater and her plans to get rid of you so she could take the job she feels should rightfully belong to her after she followed Fey Sommers around like that Marc follows her around, pantin and heelin like some kind of little lost puppy!"  
"She said she wants to get rid of me? I knew it! Do you know what she has in mind? Other than the crap she pulled today in the meeting, just to try and make me look like an idiot?"  
She looked around, 'just in case' and whispered to Daniel, "She is in cahoots with that French photographer. I saw them together, laughin and flirtin. I also heard Marc talking to one of his little followers that Philippe is still angry with you about some girl you two fought over. He and Willi are going to try and trick you on that Fabia account. So, don't trust the man."  
Daniel nodded, "Thanks, Christina. Actually, that's were Betty comes in. She had a great idea and especially now that you've told me this, I'm definitely going to go with it. I really appreciate you letting me know, though. And I promise you, I'm not going to hurt Bet…Betty? Wow!"  
She came out, wearing a deep red toile and silk dress, with the sheer toile at the top and short sleeves, then silk throughout the fitted top and waist, with a slightly flared skirt. There was a black jacket that made it more of a daytime business look. Without the jacket, it was an elegant 'cocktail' length dress. It was very tight on Betty, especially at the hips and bust.  
Daniel walked around her, feeling the material. Betty stood still, feeling flushed and strange. He looked at Christina. "Did YOU design this, Christina? It's beautiful!"  
She shook her head, "It's beautiful? No, I wish! It's Suzanne Neville. She's a friend of mine, who works in London. I met her there at Fashion Week last year. She's fantastic, isn't she? No, I do have some of my own designs I'm working on. But, this should only take me a wee bit to let it out at the hips and the bustline."  
Daniel smiled slightly, "Don't let it out too much. It looks…good."  
"Well, of course, but if you want the girl to be able to move, I'm going to have to take it out somewhat. Or if you want her to breathe, in fact."  
Betty let out a breath carefully, as Christina continued to take measurements and pin where she would be making the alterations. She slapped Betty's 'bum' lightly and grinned, "Alright, luv. I've got it. You can run and take it off now and no worries, I'll make it so you can actually move around in it!"  
"Thanks, Christina." She walked with her feet close together, afraid she would rip the dress and Christina laughed, then turned to Daniel, "So, where did you find this girl, Daniel? She's too nice for you, you know. I don't want you breakin her heart flashin those blue peepers of yers at her like weapons of mass destruction!"  
He rolled his eyes, "Christina, I told you, Betty's just a friend."  
"Then why were you just lookin at her arse?"  
He turned red, "I wasn't looking at her ARSE, okay? I…just please alter the dress for her, so I can get her an interview at one of the magazines here next week.  
I'm going to give her my personal reference to work at whatever magazine she wants here at Meade. She's really smart.  
I wish I could have her helping me at Mode, because I could definitely use an ally. But, I don't think fashion is something she's all that interested in. She knows more about almost all the other magazines other than Mode that Meade publishes than I do. Keep your comments to yourself, Christina, I may not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but I do know fashion pretty well and I know some of my father's magazines.  
I also know potential talent when I see it, and Betty belongs here, not cleaning people's houses. Although, she's actually great at that, too. I just thought I could at least see that she had a really nice outfit."  
Christina smiled at him, "Well, I grant you know talent when you see it, but the kind of talent you usually spot isn't the kind Betty's willing to give away so easily as you're used to, I imagine.  
I do think it's a nice thing you're doing for her. As long as you're doing it for altruistic reasons, I suppose that's a nice change. I'll get this stitched up for you in no time."  
"Thanks. For everything."  
She nodded.  
He smiled when Betty came out. "What is that dress for, Daniel? You're not going to make me do that presentation or whatever for Fabia, are you?" She looked nervous.  
"No, no. Not that, Betty. I was just telling Christina here how much you know about magazines and that I thought maybe I could get you an interview sometime next week so you could work here. Unless you LIKE cleaning my dirty apartment particularly?"  
She shook her head, smiling, "Not particularly, no. Wow, Daniel. That would be…amazing! Thank you. I don't know what to say. You're very sweet."  
She felt like her heart was going to burst right now if she didn't confess to him that she had actually had already tried to get an interview. She really didn't want him to feel more used by her.  
But she couldn't let him do something so nice for her without being honest with the man. She looked down at the ground, feeling too guilty to look him in the eye, "Daniel, I have a confession to make. I…already tried to get an interview here yesterday morning. But, I think they didn't like my braces or my outfit or something, because the guy at the desk wouldn't even let me have the interview once he saw me. He just shoed me away. He told me all the entry level positions had been filled. But he seemed like he was maybe lying. Anyway, I tried to talk to him.  
I told him how much I love magazines and what they mean to me, how much I've learned from them. But, when I left, I felt so defeated. I was hoping someone from Meade would call me in for an actual interview, but instead, I got the call from the cleaning agency.  
I didn't even give them my resume, my sister did. But, when I heard it was cleaning for you, I…knew who your father was, so I took the job specifically so I could try and talk you into getting me an interview. I never dreamed, well, I guess obviously, I dreamed it would work, at least eventually.  
But, I like you, Daniel. You're really sweet. I don't want you to think I just am using you like you said Amanda and so many other girls do. But, I can't help but feeling like that's exactly what I am doing. Just because I'm not…I mean, we're not …having sex, it still feels like I'm taking advantage of you; of your friendship. I don't like that.  
I want you to know, you can talk to me anytime about anything. But, you certainly don't have to get me an interview or give me expensive dresses, or anything for me to like you. I still want to just be your friend."  
He smiled at her, and shook his head, "Thank you, Betty. I appreciate your honesty. I'm actually glad to hear you did try to apply here already. I was beginning to wonder if I was overestimating your intelligence if you hadn't at least tried to get an interview here at Meade.  
But, I happen to know, although the guy might have been rude about it, he wasn't totally lying. There is only one entry level position job opening in all of the magazines here at Meade right now. And that's as my assistant at Mode. Which I figured, since you called it Mobe twice, you probably weren't all that into fashion and wouldn't be interested in. Especially since you said you were overqualified for that job. And you're right; you are.  
But, I think since you don't have much experience, that's probably the level job you'd have to start at anyway. We'll just look in a magazine you're more interested in than Mode.  
Don't worry, though. We have a big turnaround in those kinds of positions, because either someone is moving into a higher job, or they're moving away or getting married, whatever."  
She reached up and kissed him on the cheek, "Thank you, Daniel. I was scared to tell you I had sort of already applied here. I really want you to know, I'd still like being your friend, even if you weren't Daniel Meade. I think you're a nice man."  
He smirked, leaning against the wall, with his arms folded, "Hmm…I think Christina here and a lot of other women would probably say that just meant you either don't really know me all that well, Betty. I sort of have a bad reputation. And, I admit, I pretty much have earned it, I guess. But, you're different."  
She smiled back at him, "I bet you say that to all the girls you've seen naked, Daniel." He reddened and Christina raised her eyebrow as she tried to ignore their conversation and work on her sewing.  
Chapter 5: Chapter 5  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 5  
A/N: There will be a LOT of 'inner dialogue' from Daniel's end in this chapter. I wanted to show you where his head is at right now and why he makes the decisions he does about him and Betty and their relationship in the upcoming chapters.  
Daniel noticed Christina's glare, trying to ignore it and asked, "So, you have all you need, right, Christina?"  
She nodded, "Yes, sir. Cinderella's party dress will be ready to wear whenever she gets a proper invite to the ball. Just give her fairy godmother here a heads up and I can try to find a whole wardrobe worth of designer duds for the princess if you like."  
"Thanks. And make sure and remind me to take a look at those designs of yours next week, Christina. As long as I get this Fabia thing and I'm still Editor-in-chief that is. I appreciate the intel."  
"No problem, boss."  
He grabbed Betty's hand, "Come on, I'll show you my office and we can go work on your idea in the conference room."  
She turned to Christina and gave her a hug, "Thank you, Christina. Daniel was right. You really are a miracle worker. I love the dress. You're really talented. It was nice to meet you."  
"You too, Betty." She leaned forward and whispered, "Don't let that one fool you. He seems like a nice enough guy; but I've seen him hurt a lot of girls. I don't think he really means to…"  
Betty shook her head, as she left, "Oh, thanks for the warning, Christina, but I'm fine. Daniel and I are just friends. There's nothing romantic going on between us. I mean, look at me."  
Christina narrowed her eyes, "I'm looking. And so is he. Don't fool yourself into thinking you're 'safe' behind the glasses and braces, Betty. Daniel has a good eye for beauty, I'll give him that. He sees something in you. And I guarantee you his eyes weren't on your brains earlier."  
Betty just shrugged her off, thinking she was being ridiculous, "Nice meeting you."  
Christina shook her head, returning to her work, "See you around, sweetie."  
Daniel smiled and watched Betty's reaction to the stark white halls and the bold orange donut at Mode. He waved at it, smirking,  
"Here's where Amanda pretends she's answering the phones, whenever she's in the mood and then comes bouncing into my office to give me my messages, then flirts with me and tries to get me to see what a great assistant she would make, by dropping some really obvious hint. She isn't very subtle."  
Betty laughed, then drew a breath, seeing his office. "Nice! So, I suppose this is where you 'entertain' all your clients and have your assistants take your dictation, huh, mister big shot?" she teased.  
He rolled his eyes, and smiled his charming grin, managing to look almost like a shy little boy, "Well, I haven't been doing this very long. I was actually surprised my old man even offered me the job. I admit I blew through my trust fund pretty quickly, living it up these past few years…"  
"Since Alex died?" She seemed to be able to read him so well. He wondered how it was possible for this girl to see through him when nobody had ever bothered to try before.  
He stood behind his desk, gripping his hands on the back of his chair, swiveling it back and forth a bit.  
When she said his brother's name his grip tightened, and he looked up into her wise eyes, seeing her notice his reaction. This girl was so young, so innocent. How was it she seemed to also be so wise well beyond her years?  
Perhaps going through her own mother's death had made her the one person who could really understand how Daniel felt. He felt relief that the brother he could never measure up to was gone and he could finally climb out from Alex's shadow.  
But, deep down, he loved his brother, so he also felt enormous guilt for having that sense of relief. He had so much pressure from his father to live up to his family name and be the man Bradford expected his son to be. And with Wilhelmina Slater out to get rid of him, to try and make him look like an idiot, when he already felt like one, he really could use a friend about now.  
When Alex was alive, Daniel knew he could never compete with his brother, so he didn't even try. He just acted the part of the 'man-whore' as he had been dubbed by the press, giving them all exactly what they expected out of him, partying with his friend Becks and going through women like they were six packs of beer.  
Now, he saw he had something to prove. To his father, to Wilhelmina, to the press, and more importantly, to himself. He wanted to prove he could actually do this job and do it well. He wanted desperately to show the world that there was more to Daniel Meade than just a rich boy gone bad. And he knew, somehow the minute he met her that Betty Suarez was the one to help him do that.  
It was an interesting sensation for Daniel to feel protective towards a woman. But he looked at her standing across from him, so kind, so full of hope and optimism. Things he had become far too jaded in his life to still have, if he ever did. He sensed that Betty held the key to helping him keep his job and he wanted to reward her, to pay her back for that.  
She rubbed her hands together anxiously, "So, should we get to work on the Fabia thing? What do you need?"  
He grinned at her enthusiasm and willingness to roll her sleeves up and help him out of the goodness of her heart. He showed her to the conference room and got a laptop for her. He was amazed at how quick she was, how intuitive, and methodical in her research skills.  
She found the demographics on the Fabia line and saw how, as she suspected, slightly older customers had been very loyal to the products and the numbers definitely backed that up. She found a few graphics and put them deftly into a power point for Daniel. He blinked, not believing how good she was at this.  
"What's your degree in? Where did you go to college, again, Betty?"  
She smiled, satisfied with her work and handed him back the laptop. "My BFA is in media. I graduated cum laude from Queen's College. Not exactly Harvard, but…it's all I could afford. Especially with also having to pay for these stupid braces with no insurance. My dad is helping, but he's got heart disease, so we have medical bills for all of his prescriptions, too."  
He nodded, sympathetically, feeling extremely guilty for all the advantages his wealth had provided him over the years that he had taken for granted. He cringed, thinking of all the classes he blew off.  
"You're a miracle worker, too, Betty. Thank you. If you ever change your mind about the fashion thing…or being my assistant."  
She looked at him, seeming to consider it for a minute, then shook her head, looking down at her outfit, rather feeling like Cinderella she thought ironically, "Thanks, Daniel. That's really sweet. But, as you can see, I'd be miserable working at some fashion place. Besides, you've seen The Devil Wears Prada, I assume. I'd be Andy all over again.  
There are so many girls who would DIE or kill to work at MoDe I'm sure. I'd feel really guilty working at a high fashion magazine when I have no real interest in it. Like you said, I'll wait for a job at a real magazine. I…sorry. I didn't mean that how it sounded."  
He laughed, "That's okay, Betty. I like how you always say exactly what's on your mind. You certainly don't pull any punches. I need that. I'm sick to death of people pretending I'm always right or I'm so brilliant when I know they really think I'm an idiot.  
You, at least come right out and TELL me when you think I'm being stupid. I like it, though, because that way, when you do actually tell me I'm doing something right for a change, I know you're being sincere. It means a lot more."  
She blushed, "Well, should we go back to my house and get the picture you wanted?"  
He shook his head, as he dropped the laptop into a computer bag and threw it over his shoulder. "I don't really feel like saying goodnight just yet, do you?  
Could we go hang out somewhere maybe? I used to go to Coney Island all the time as a kid and it was really fun. Are you up for it? You don't have anything going on really early tomorrow morning, do you? It's still pretty early. You work incredibly fast. You're on hyper speed. I'd hate to see how fast you are with caffeine!"  
She laughed, shaking her head, "I try to avoid regular coffee. I usually drink decaf."  
"I'll try to remember that."  
He found himself breathing a little unevenly when he got closer to her, looking down into her eyes. He couldn't help wonder what she looked like without the glasses. She seemed almost like she was trying to hide something. He grabbed them, without thinking. She reached for them, "Daniel! I need those, please?" She seemed defenseless without them, like they were some kind of shield for her.  
He brushed her cheek, feeling a sudden urge he didn't really want to admit to, even to himself right now, and he quickly handed her back her glasses. "Sorry. I was just messing around, Betty. I didn't mean to freak you out. So, Coney Island?"  
She nodded, smiling from ear to ear. He laughed, catching himself imagining what she was going to look like once she got her braces off. It made him feel unbearably old to be looking at this young, sweet, kind, innocent girl in a way he shouldn't be looking at her.  
Damn that Christina! Catching him uh…checking Betty out. Although, he had to say, seeing her naked coming out of her bathroom earlier hadn't exactly made him feel all that 'strictly friends' about the woman, either, if he were honest with himself.  
If only he could get the image of her wet, naked, curvy body out of his head, he could just be her buddy, her pal, her…yeah, this wasn't really working. But, Betty wasn't like other women he had used and discarded, like they were disposable toys for his own amusement. She was amazing. She was sweet, she was generous and caring.  
He had to erase any inappropriate thoughts he might be having towards her right now and just be her friend. He could do this. He could have a strictly platonic relationship with a woman, he told himself.  
Besides, look at her, she looks like a kid, he thought. He'd have to be crazy or perverted to want to… caress her soft cheek again, to grab her close to him and feel her soft…SHIT, knock it off, Daniel!  
Sometimes he even disgusted himself with his seemingly unrelenting libido. He wondered if it was the curse from his father. The only thing he inherited from Bradford. Not his business acumen or his ability to close a deal in the boardroom. No, the only thing he felt like he inherited from his famous father was the man's ability to 'close the deal' in the bedroom.  
And that was the last thing he wanted to do with this sweet girl. And somehow, also, the thing he wanted more than anything. She was like forbidden fruit. The more he told himself she was off limits and not even a consideration the more tempted he could feel himself becoming.  
He tried to ignore the growing tension in his gut and grabbed her hand she held out to head back down to the waiting town car.  
Once they arrived at Coney Island, he relaxed. They laughed, like two kids, enjoying themselves. She made him feel so young, so carefree. She made him forget all the weight of the world that he normally felt on his shoulders.  
Betty giggled, seeing Daniel wearing the huge plastic glasses he had won at the ring toss game. She pointed, "You look great in glasses, Daniel. They almost make you seem smart!" she teased.  
"Almost, huh? Thanks, Betty. You're so sweet! So, you think I'm dumb, huh? Well, Miss smarty-pants, let's see how great your driving skills are, shall we? Put some of your brilliance to the test behind the wheel. Come on; show me what you're made of, Betty." He jumped into one of the open bumper cars and she got in the one next to him, furrowing her brow in challenge.  
"Bring it on, Harvard boy!"  
They drove around, bumping into one another, and although she held her own, Daniel outmaneuvered and bumped into her hard every time she started to get up her speed driving away from him. They laughed as the time ended and they got out of their respective cars, shaking hands, "Call it a draw?"  
Betty shook her head, "No, no. Daniel. I can be gracious in defeat. You beat me, fair and square. So, what's my punishment?"  
He heard music, coming from the boardwalk, and held out his hand, 'Dance with me?" She blushed, and nodded, "Sure. But, what kind of punishment is dancing with you? Do you have two left feet or something?"  
He shook his head, smiling, "Not normally, no. Although, I was never very good at the Latin stuff."  
He pulled her towards him, and slid his arm around her, wondering if this was such a good idea. Yet, somehow he couldn't stop himself.  
She whispered, "It's fine. I am pretty decent at Latin dance, actually. I'd be glad to teach you sometime, Daniel."  
He felt himself melt into her, and knew he was in trouble. He had to keep it together. What was wrong with him, anyway? She was hardly what you'd call beautiful, that was for sure.  
First of all, there were the braces. The metal kind that made her look like she was twelve years old. And she had goofy red glasses that did nothing to show off her full, soft, creamy cheeks or beautiful brown eyes. Her hair, when she didn't have it pulled up into a pony tail, was all over the place. She wore nothing that matched or had any style.  
She obviously knew absolutely nothing about the world of high fashion, that Daniel was used to being around. He had dated models and actresses that would consider it torture to have to wear something 'off the rack'. And this girl? She was a mess!  
Her brows looked like Oscar the Grouch, her idea of makeup seemed to be a dab of lip gloss, and instead of perfume she smelled like vanilla cookies or something equally delicious and sensuous. He flashed back to her standing in front of him, and closed his eyes, quickly, to try and give his body a chance to recover from the assault he felt to all his senses.  
It was like Betty was an invasion to Daniel's whole way of life. She was here now, and he knew he would never be the same. Everything now revolved around her. It was Betty's world and he was helplessly caught in her net. But no matter what silly ideas he had in his head about this girl, he was determined he would pay her back for helping him and being his friend when he really needed one.  
Chapter 6: Chapter 6  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 6  
Daniel opened the door to his loft and saw women's clothing scattered on the floor of his living room and leading into the bedroom. He tried to remember who had his key and as he stepped into the bedroom, he saw Amanda, lying on his bed, pouting.  
"So, where were you all night? Out with another woman? I think I'm jealous. Who is she, Daniel?"  
Daniel shook his head, patting his computer bag, "I did some work on the Fabia account. Or, rather, a friend did a lot of work for me. I found out Wilhelmina is definitely trying to sabotage me, no surprise there, I guess. Uh, Amanda, no offense, but I don't remember giving you a key. How did you get in?"  
She crawled on to the end of the bed, wearing only her shoes. He looked away, leaving a wide space around the bed as he went to take off his jacket and set down the laptop.  
Amanda looked at his expression. "So, you're too tired to play tonight? From working so hard, is that it? You're telling me, there's no other girlfriend?"  
"No, there is no girlfriend, but Amanda, I'm sorry. We've talked about this already, I don't want to hurt you, but I don't really think we're right for each other. You said before, you just wanted to fool around, and that was great, we had a lot of fun, but…I really think maybe we should cool it.  
I've got to find an assistant and I know you've made it clear you want to do that, but I need someone who isn't going to distract me from getting my job done, and obviously, given our situation, that wouldn't be the case with us."  
"So, you think you found someone who will do better?" She sounded jealous.  
He shook his head, as he pulled off his tie and threw it on a chair. "No, I thought I had found someone who would be great at actually doing the job, but she isn't interested.  
So, I don't know what to do in the long term. But, in the short term, I do need you to actually answer the phones, instead of doing your nails at the reception desk." He didn't mean to sound harsh, but he had tried to tell her before, he wasn't that interested, and she had merely come onto him all the more. She wasn't taking the hint.  
Plus, Christina's comment had made him stop and think. He didn't want to keep using Amanda like this. It wasn't fair to either of them, especially her. He didn't love her and he could see she was starting to develop feelings for him that he couldn't return.  
He figured it was better to let her know how he felt now, and end things, once and for all, rather than continue to lead the poor girl on, only to hurt her more later on. Maybe if he tried to be the 'jerk boss' she would go find someone she really could love that would love her, too.  
He sat on the chair, and tried to ignore her nudity. Wow, two naked women in one day! Although not completely unheard of, this was a little unusual, even for him, he thought, not really as happy about that fact as he should be, perhaps.  
He kept his voice deliberately low, and controlled, "Amanda. Listen, I think we both knew, going into this little arrangement that it wasn't really healthy for either of us. Don't get me wrong; I think you're beautiful, and sweet, and fun.  
And I've really enjoyed our time together. But, I don't want to end up hurting you. And, I'm afraid the longer we continue this, that's how things would turn out, eventually. I'm sorry, but we need to make a clean break of things."  
His phone rang, as she hurriedly started putting on her clothes, seeming angry and rather shocked to have him turn her down. Daniel smiled and talked softly, "Yeah, me, too. I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow. Okay. I think so. Sounds great! Thanks again for all your help. See you tomorrow, then, goodnight."  
He was somewhat surprised to see Amanda had been listening to his conversation. "Who was that? Your new girlfriend? The one who 'helped' you with your project? I guess I'm just yesterday's news, huh, Daniel? Fine, go ahead, have fun with your new slut! I hope she makes you very happy!" She started to storm out.  
Daniel caught her by her arms and looked into her eyes, "Amanda, I'm really sorry. I was afraid this would happen. I never meant to hurt you. I hope you can forgive me and we can maybe even be friends eventually."  
"Don't hold your breath, Daniel! You'll be sorry, rejecting this. It's your loss." She ran her hand down herself and turned to leave, and slammed his key on the kitchen counter.  
He watched her leave, and picked up the key. He hated knowing that he hurt her. But, he had to admit, he also felt relieved. He knew going into it, it was a one-sided relationship. Christina had been right, he had merely been using Amanda to ward off his loneliness and hide the fact that he had no one to talk to.  
He had tried to have that kind of relationship with her, but she only seemed interested in sex, and though he knew she cared for him, she didn't really get him or his problems and his moods. At least… not like Betty.  
Betty didn't know why she felt compelled to call Daniel only an hour after he had dropped her off at her house in Queens. They had spent all night together the night before, then had spent most of this night together. You would think she would have seen and spoken to the man enough in all that time.  
But for some reason, talking to him, hearing his voice felt like an addiction. The more she had, the more she wanted. She simply couldn't get enough of him. She knew nothing would come of it. He was Daniel Meade, for goodness sakes! He was insanely good-looking; women threw themselves at him.  
She would have laughed at herself in the mirror, the thought of them being together so completely absurd. She saw, first of all, her bright, shining braces, the things that sent most guys heading for the hills the minute she smiled. Plus, there were her glasses.  
Practical, even beloved, and well-worn, but even she knew, they were definitely not stylish. She examined her hair. Right now, the ponytail had mostly come out and her hair was sticking out in all kinds of directions.  
Then, there was the matter of her eyebrows. She knew they badly needed grooming. But she absolutely hated tweezing! It hurt like hell.  
Her wardrobe, especially after seeing the 'closet' at Mode today, she realized, was woefully inadequate for any kind of office job where she would be required to 'dress up'.  
Daniel's kind gesture to have Christina alter a designer dress for her only made her realize how out of place at Meade Publications she was. She knew she had the brains to handle things there, though. He was the Editor-in-chief of the flagship magazine, Mode, and Daniel couldn't stop complimenting her tonight for her abilities.  
So, if she kept checking the job listings for Meade for another entry level position for one of their other magazines, she knew he would give her a great reference.  
But despite the fact of Daniel being a Meade, his own position seemed somewhat tenuous, so Betty was nervous as to how much help he could be to her, if he had no power there himself.  
Therefore, career-wise, it only stood to reason, that she should do everything she could to make sure Daniel kept his job at Mode. She thought how nice it would be to actually take him up on his offer to be his assistant. She would get to see him everyday, all day.  
Then, she looked in the mirror again. Sooner or later, she would see him with Amanda or one of the other beautiful women at Mode. It was a fashion magazine.  
There were tons of models and other gorgeous girls just dying to get their well-manicured claws into Daniel Meade, for any number of reasons, not the least of which being that he was pretty darn gorgeous, himself. Yes, she could admit it; the man was basically the hottest guy Betty had ever met in her life.  
When he said her name, with his low, sexy voice, she literally got chills. And let's talk about the man's cologne. When a man already looks that good, it's was so completely unfair for him to wear whatever expensive cologne it was that he wore, that made her feel like a puddle of goo when they had danced.  
Then came the final nail in her coffin, his eyes! Oh, my GOD! Betty felt like she had died and gone to heaven the first time she looked into those eyes of his. They were amazing, insanely gorgeous. And she didn't even want to think about his body. Okay, okay, Betty. Enough!  
Not that any of these things mattered. They were outside things that attracted her to Daniel physically, true. But the real pull wasn't how he looked, or sounded, or even his mesmerizing eyes, although they indeed did seem to be the window to his soul. For Betty, one who had come to value far more the inside of the book, rather than its' cover, though, was what a kind, gentle man he was.  
There were lots of men with Daniel's power and station in life who wouldn't have bothered to even take two seconds out of their high-powered, glamorous life to talk to a girl who looked like Betty, but he wasn't like that. Daniel saw her for who she really was.  
He seemed to ignore her outside 'armor' as she often called how she looked and see her, really see her for the beautiful person she was inside and perhaps even for the butterfly waiting to escape her cocoon someday. He clearly valued her. He listened to her opinions and talked and joked with her, just like he would anyone. That made her feel…well, beautiful.  
But then, she stopped at the hallway mirror, and told reminded herself. Betty, don't be ridiculous. You aren't beautiful. You will never have Daniel's heart. Because you look like this. This is reality. She faced herself in the mirror and repeated out loud, "You are a strong, intelligent, confident, attractive woman and you will do great things. But not with him! Not like that.  
You have to be realistic. You are who you are. You look how you look. As much as he might appreciate your friendship, that's all he feels for you and getting all ga ga over some dreamboat millionaire guy that is never going to be interested in you that way is only going to break your heart, Betty, so knock it off! All Daniel is EVER going to be is a friend. The sooner you get that through your head, the better off you'll be!"  
Unseen by Betty, Hilda had heard her little speech to herself, and shook her head, feeling sadness for her little sister. She smiled to herself, as she got an idea and went to talk to her brilliant son.  
Christina had been feeling lonely and a little tired of all the 'chic-ees' at Mode for some time now. There were only a handful of 'real' people who she could stand to talk to outside of the workplace. So, she had been spending far too much time, at her local bar, talking to the bartender, she knew.  
She had to admit, at times, she even missed Stuart. She knew if she ever wanted to make her own dreams of becoming a designer come true she had to leave. They had some serious problems with their marriage, but his only answer when she tried to talk to him about it had been to go to the pub and while she tried drinking with him that didn't make those problems go away, it only made the drinking become another problem to add to the list.  
She smiled, thinking of the cute little girl, Betty who she had met with Daniel today. She wondered what kind of girl, who looked like that could still manage to attract the obvious interest of a man like Daniel Meade. The girl clearly had something very special about her. She had only said a few words to her, and Christina already liked her immediately.  
She looked at the number Betty had given her and at the clock. It was only nine thirty, not too late to see if the girl wanted to go get a drink so she could find out a bit more about her, she thought. She called and heard the surprise in Betty's voice, but also curiosity about her, too.  
"Of course, I'd love to meet for drinks, Christina. I can be there in about half an hour. I'll see you then. Thanks!"  
Christina had to smile when she saw the girl walk into the bar. She was wearing some god-awful mix-matched dress and a huge, puffy blue coat that looked like an inflated tire. She shook her head, thinking she surely had to show this girl how to dress to show off what the Lord had given her in abundance, instead of covering up those gifts with Circus clown apparel.  
Chapter 7: Chapter 7  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 7  
A/N: I'm excited to see so many people enjoy reading this story! I'm always a bit hesitant to 'mess' with canon and do something A/U, especially a story that 're-invents the wheel', so to speak. But, my idea was to put Daniel and Betty in a very different kind of boss/employee situation; one a little more relaxed to allow that great friendship of theirs a way to blossom a bit quicker. Kind of like 'hothouse' gardening for their relationship! (Hey, I like gardening, what can I say?) Some events will still be canon, depending on which way I decide to have things 'skew' off from the series. Please review!

Daniel had been trying to ignore Wilhelmina (and Amanda) all day. He also felt extremely annoyed by Marc, who kept following him around (Daniel assumed to spy on him for Wilhelmina).  
He stopped short and Marc almost ran into a chair. So, Daniel turned sharply around, "Marc, is there something I can do for you?"  
"What me? Oh, no. I was just going to tell you, you uh…have a loose thread on your uh…here." He pulled on the back of Daniel's pants, grabbing a 'loose' thread until he made a rip in the back of his pants.  
"MARC! What the hell? Get your hands off me!" Daniel shook his head and hurried off to see Christina.  
Marc walked over to the orange donut and smiled as he gave Amanda a 'sliding five', and she smiled seductively, narrowing her eyes.  
"Thanks, bestie. That big douche thinks he's so high and mighty, dumping me. He thinks he can find a better assistant than me? Huh! Who needs him, anyway? He's a big…JERK!" She pouted, and Marc hugged her, patting her back.  
"It's okay, Mandy Pandy! He'll be gone soon enough. Willi's got plans to send him right back to the nearest hoochie he rode in on! Oh, sorry, I didn't mean you, of course, sweetie."  
Daniel walked carefully, with his back to the wall to the closet, "Christine? Where are you? I have a little problem here. I need your help. BETTY! What are you doing here?" Now he was even more embarrassed, with his ass hanging out of his pants, thanks to Marc.  
Daniel looked around nervously, "Where is Christina?"  
Betty pointed to the ladies room, "Not feeling too well today. We went out last night. She drinks…a LOT! I stopped way before she did and I still have a killer headache! I had a cleaning job this morning and I just got done cleaning the bathroom, then I had to clean it again, after I got sick myself!"  
He laughed. "So, you went out partying all night with Miss McKinney after I dropped you off, huh? Quite the little social butterfly, aren't you, Betty?  
Yeah, I somehow ended up drinking here late one night with her and she drank me under the table. I guess it must be the Scottish thing! So, hey, I pitched the basic idea today to Fabia on my own.  
I didn't tell Wilhemina I was having a preliminary meeting. I wanted to make sure Fabia liked the idea before I started looking for a photographer.  
Since Philippe is now on my short list of people who hate me and are trying to get me fired, I thought I might go with a different photographer.  
You already did all my work for me on the concept, I know, Betty. I don't suppose you have any ideas for a good photographer while you're doing all my work for me?" he gave her one of his disarming grins.  
She blushed slightly, thinking for a minute, "I thought you said your friend was a photographer? Is he any good? Use him, if he is."  
"Becks? I don't think he'd be up for shooting mom's and their daughters. Not unless the moms were really hot and wearing very little clothing, at least. And I think he's probably allergic to kids."  
"I see. And he's your best friend, huh?" She smiled, raising an eyebrow.  
"Hey, are you telling me I need new friends?" he laughed.  
"No, of course not. But, I think…oh, Daniel! What happened?" She noticed his pants.  
He turned red, putting his back against the wall again. "Oh, it's nothing. Stupid Marc. I thought he was spying on me for his fearless queen, Miss Slater at first.  
He practically had his nose up my butt all day, but then he actually pulled the thread out on my damn pants. I think maybe it was in retaliation for his best friend, Amanda. We uh…kind of broke up last night. So, I assume this was his way of showing solidarity for her."  
Betty looked down, trying not to smile, "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. I thought Amanda was really nice."  
"No, you didn't. How could you? She didn't even say all that much to you. She just ran out the door the other night."  
She shrugged, "Well, she shook my hand."  
He shook his head, "Is there anybody you don't like, Betty? You make me feel bad. You're nice to everybody."  
She had been looking through the portfolios he had with him of photographer's work, and pointed, "Oh, wow! Vincent Biancchi! You so need to get this guy, Daniel. His work is amazing!  
He's way better than that Philippe. He did some things that were okay, but he uses other people's concepts and isn't very original. His thing with the tiki torches was a total copy of Hiroshi's work."  
He smiled, wondering if there was anything this girl didn't know a lot about, but shook his head, sadly, "Yeah, I know. I like Biancchi's work, too. You're right, Betty. His stuff is amazing. Unfortunately, he'll never work for us. He and my brother Alex had a huge fight and he vowed he'd never work for Meade Publications again."  
"Well, how do you know until you ask him, Daniel? You're not Alex. You didn't argue with the man. You want the best, don't you?"  
He smiled, "Well, yeah, but…I don't know, Betty. We'll see. Thanks for the idea, though. Oh, hey, Christina. Feeling better?"  
Christina was holding her head, "D'ya have to be so bloody loud, Daniel? There's no need to go shoutin at me!"  
Daniel smiled at the woman, holding her head, clearly suffering from her own overindulgence.  
"Betty came to bring me some aspirin and some lunch. We had a few too many pints down at the pub last night. Or, at least, I did. She's a light weight, this one.  
What are you doin here, anyway? I finished her dress, and gave it to her. And I already told her I have more clothes I can alter for her, but she wouldn't hear of it."  
Daniel shook his head, "Betty, why don't you let Christine do that for you? You'll need more than one outfit. Christine has plenty she can give you that are last season, but they still look really nice.  
Actually, I have my own wardrobe malfunction here, thanks to Marc. Do you have an extra pair of pants I can wear, Christine? That idiot pulled the damn thread out of these."  
"Why did he do that? Was he comin on to ya?"  
He shook his head, "No. At least, I don't think so. I think he was um…upset with me about something else."  
She gave him a look, while she pointed for him to go behind the curtain and take off his pants. He handed them to her and she kept his gaze, "What else? Something about the wicked witch of the east side?"  
He shook his head. She held his pants up, holding the thread out to indicate she wasn't going to start sewing until he told her. Finally, he sighed, and mumbled, "I broke up with Amanda."  
She smiled, nodding her head knowingly. "I see. Good for you, Daniel. I'm glad to see you growing some balls for a change. And learning to think with something besides little Danny."  
He furrowed his brow, "Christina! Knock it off! Just sew, please. Don't you have another pair I can wear in the meantime?"  
Betty felt uncomfortable. She and Daniel had already seen far too much of one another for having just met. She hugged Christine, "Bye. Thanks for the fun night, Christina. Call me later, if you want. I only have one more house to clean. I should be done by six. Bye, Daniel. Good luck with your shoot. I'm glad Fabia liked the concept. I hope you find a good photographer."  
"Bye, Betty. I'll talk to you soon. I'll uh…see you at my place tomorrow night, right? Maybe when I get home, we could go grab a bite if you're not too tired?"  
"Sure. Thanks. Is it my turn to buy again?"  
"No, no. I've got it. I asked you, remember? Take care."  
As soon as she left, Christina looked at him, shaking her head. He ignored her stare, "Uh, pants, please? I'm getting cold back here in my underwear."  
"I would think you'd be used to runnin around in your boxers, Daniel. Here." She handed him another pair of pants from the rack while she worked on his. "Tell me, what made you suddenly decide you'd had enough of little Goldielock's particular brand of duh-um blonde charms?"  
He shrugged, putting his pants on, then coming out and straightening his shirt and tie in the mirror.  
"Nothing in particular. It wasn't going anywhere. I decided it was best to end it. Neither of us was looking for anything long term. Since when is my love life your business, Christine?"  
"It's not. I just find it very interesting that the minute you meet Betty, you suddenly end your little 'relationship' if you can even call it that with Amanda, that's all. I just call them how I see them, Daniel."  
"Just sew my pants, please. I'll be back for them later. Say, maybe…the thing for Betty that you said, altering some more things…"  
She put up her hand, "Don't you worry your pretty little head about Betty. I've got her all taken care of, luv. She'll have enough clothes that make the most of that figure of hers I saw you eyeing before the end of the week. I still don't think she will be interested in workin fer ya at Mode, though, Daniel.  
You can't blame the girl fer not wantin to jump into the shark tank with ya. She might fare all right at one of the other magazines here, but this place even gives me the willies with all the chic-ees. Poor Betty's got more to overcome than her uh… interestin fashion sense."  
"Interesting? What, you mean the coat? It's not that bad. I mean, well, maybe see if you can find her a nice wool one. If not, I could…"  
"She's not going to accept charity from you, Daniel. She's too proud fer that. It's sweet of you, actually. I'm glad to see you doing this. Just tell me you don't have some strange fetish for girls with braces now.  
I know it's feet fer yer…never mind. I also know that besides starin at her arse, you saw her in the altogether at her house. Is that what's got you chasin her around?"  
He rolled his eyes, "Christina…lay off, will you, please? I don't have anything going on with Betty. I'm not chasing her around, either. We're just friends, that's all. Haven't you ever just wanted to have someone to talk to? She's fun to be around. I enjoy her company.  
She listens to me. She encourages me. I..haven't seen my mom in a while, since she's been in rehab. I barely speak to my father. My friend's out of touch a lot. Betty's a nice girl. I like her. Don't make it into more than that.  
I suppose she told you I accidentally walked in on her yesterday. Look, I didn't mean to do that and I'm not thinking about…having anything more with her than friendship, okay? Are you satisfied, now?  
Besides, what if I did want to date her or something? Would that be against the law? She's over age. What's it to you, anyway? Are you her protector now?"  
Christina raised her eyebrows, "I thought you said you just wanted to be her friend? Now you want to date her?"  
"I didn't say that. I just said it's none of your business if I did."  
Chapter 8: Chapter 8  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 8  
When Betty finished cleaning her second house Tuesday, she came home, ready to shower and collapse. She wasn't much of a drinker, and going out with Christina the night before had been fun, but now she was exhausted. All she wanted to do was…  
"HILDA! This is so NOT funny! Where are all my clothes?" She went into her closet, only to find that other than a few pair of jeans and tee shirts, and anything with solid colors, all her clothes were missing. She had lots of dresses and shirts with bold colors and patterns, but they had all suddenly disappeared from her room.  
She looked for her sister or nephew (he had likely been drafted into this little prank by his mother, Betty knew). "You're going to have to show yourselves sooner or later, you know! You may as well come out and confess." She heard giggles and followed the sound of their laughter downstairs and stood, in her towel, yelling at them, "Okay, ha ha, where are all my good clothes? I can't believe you stole all my dress clothes, you two. Where are they?"  
"They're gone, AB! We donated them to Goodwill. Mom told me to go through your closet and get rid of anything hideous and well, it wasn't pretty, but I love you, so I did it. Somebody had to, Aunt Betty. You seriously need to be voted on 'What's Not to Wear!  
In fact, that's what Mom and I are going to do! Just pretend she's Stacey and I'm Clinton. Luckily, we already live in New York, so we don't have to fly you here. Plus, your new friend Christina called and she's got a lot of designer things that are last season that she altered for you to get things rolling for your new look.  
But, Mom and grandpa and I all pooled together our money and we're buying you a few essentials, too. Plus, she is going to groom those caterpillars you call eyebrows and help you tame the wild beast and give you a conditioning hair treatment."  
"And I know you don't want to sell Herba-luxe, but that doesn't mean you can't actually WEAR some makeup, other than lip gloss. It isn't poison. At least, not that we know of."  
"Besides, beauty is pain, AB. You're height challenged. Heels are an essential."  
Betty put up her hand, "Enough, both of you! I get it; you all think I look terrible. I know I have uh…lots of flaws, but you don't have to make me feel worse. I'm a good person. It wouldn't make a difference no matter what I did, though. May I remind you, I still have braces and glasses? So, it's kind of like putting lipstick on a…"  
"Pig? I know." Betty looked extremely hurt. He quickly interjected, "No, no, Aunt B, I didn't mean that YOU are a pig, I just meant, well, you do have the braces, true, but grandpa found out about a payment plan he can afford to help you with since you're working now.  
Besides, if you get the job at Meade, you'll get dental insurance that will help you even more. You can get those see through kind of braces, like Tom Cruise. We're not trying to hurt your feelings, AB, but this is an intervention. Because we love you."  
"Yeah, and Betty, I know a friend at Herba-luxe that has a brother that gets knock off designer glasses and can sometimes even get super cheap contacts at cost! Even with you just cleaning, since you're making pretty much, you can at least get those, at first.  
I…well, I heard you saying how much you liked Daniel but that you thought he would never even look at you. I know you like him. He's a nice guy, too. But, just for yourself, and for your own self-confidence, I think you deserve a chance to see you really are a beautiful person.  
I see your beauty in how great you are to everyone. I know you got teased through school. I couldn't beat up everybody who was mean to you back then, Betty. But I work with women giving them make-overs all the time. I can at least help you with your hair and makeup.  
And Justin and Christine can help you with your clothes. I volunteered to take you to this one beauty salon I know where I could get you a discount, but Justin insisted they would just make you look 'tacky', and you'd look like 'Queens threw up', whatever that means, so…I'll do what I can and I'm sure your friend Christina and Justin can help, too. Bottom line, we all love you. And we want you to feel good about yourself.  
You've been taking care of us all these years. You deserve to feel beautiful. And not just on the inside where I know it really counts, but on the outside where hot guys notice it!"  
Betty hugged her sister and nephew, through her tears, "Papi, you were in on this, too?" She saw her father, slowly coming into the kitchen. He had been pretending not to know what was going on, watching television from the living room when Betty first came downstairs. "Yes, mijah. Hilda told us both she overheard you last night, upset about some boy."  
"Oh, he's not a boy, papi. Daniel's all man."  
"Hey! Hilda!"  
Her sister smiled, "Ooh, sorry, Betty. Don't worry; I don't want him for me. He's cute, but he's not my type."  
"Well, this Daniel…he's a good man? Isn't he the one who is your boss now? The one who's house you were supposedly cleaning all night? Is that really all that was going on, mijah?"  
"Papi! Betty's a grown woman. She isn't a virgin."  
"HILDA!" Betty, and her father both glared at her. She shrugged, grinning, "What? Whatever! I'm just saying, papi, Betty's not ten anymore. You've got to stop treating her like she is your little girl.  
I know you thought she and Walter were going to get married, and so did I, but the more I thought about it, if he cheats on her now, he's not going to get any better when they get married, things would only get worse!  
Besides, now that I talked to Betty's friend, Christina on the phone, she seems to think Betty's really got a shot not only a job at that place she works, or one of their other magazines, but at this Daniel guy, too.  
Christina said she caught him checking out Betty's ass, I mean…assets. And evidently, he got quite the eyeful last night, too when he followed her over here. More than I even realized!" She grinned at Betty.  
Betty gave her a warning look, "Hilda, stop butting into my life, please! I appreciate all the beauty help and I suppose, since you stole all my clothes, I don't really have a choice but to take the ones Christina has for me from Mode and whatever we buy that Justin approves of, but I don't need your help trying to 'get' Daniel. He and I are just friends. I just met him. And he probably just looked at my…whatever because well, he is a guy and that's just what they do. It doesn't mean he's seriously interested in me.  
And even if pigs could fly and he was, I don't really know him all that well. But, I think he just needs a friend right now. I know what you heard, but…I was just talking out loud, to MYSELF. It didn't really mean anything."  
Hilda nodded, "Sure, Betty. Whatever you say, mami. Let's just see if we can polish up this diamond in the rough a bit and see what happens?  
Regardless, looking more put together will at least make you feel better about yourself and help you get a job at Meade, right? You said yourself you thought that guy at the front desk didn't like the way you looked and that's why he turned you away and didn't even give you a chance. And Christina said that's why you didn't want to work for Daniel when he offered for you to be his assistant."  
"This man already offered you another job working for him at that fashion magazine of his? Mijah, are you SURE he isn't uh…trying to"  
"Papi, no! I just helped him with some stuff for his proposal for a big account. He admires my work, that's all."  
She saw her father looking at one of the books she had brought home to look at on Vincent Biancchi's work. She knew that name sounded familiar and she wanted to see if she could figure out a way to persuade the guy to overlook his feud with Daniel's now deceased brother and do the shoot.  
"This kid really is some big shot photographer, now, huh? His old man is always bragging about him. I thought he was full of hot air. Frankly, I always thought Vinnie was going to end up in jail. He was always a little rough around the edges, if you ask me."  
She furrowed her brows, "Vinnie? You know him?"  
He shrugged, "Sort of. You do, too. You and your sister worked at the lemon ice place that his old man ran during the summer, don't you remember? He grew up four blocks from here."  
"He's from Queens? Oh, papi! Thank you! You're a genius!" She kissed him on the cheek and ran to make a call.  
She couldn't believe she actually talked to Vincent Biancchi himself. He answered the phone and seemed interested in what she had to say at first. But when she mentioned 'Meade Publications', he hung up on her. She sighed, trying to think of another way to get the man to consider working with Daniel.  
After she had put on her same black slacks Justin had approved and a solid color button down shirt Hilda lent her that was too big for her, Betty came downstairs and let her sister torture her, tweezing her eyebrows and taming her fly away hair. Later, after returning from trading in her favorite red glasses for some fashionable clear ones with black frames on the side, they stopped and got an ice cream.  
Justin refused, saying he didn't want to get fat, but his mother insisted on him trying a taste. "Sweetie, you're a boy. It doesn't really matter as much if you get fat!" Betty smiled, rolling her eyes at the double standard.  
While she really appreciated all her family (and new friends) was doing for her, she hated that society made people conform to some ideal standard of what was beautiful and what wasn't. It went against everything she believed in. When she said as much out loud to her sister, however, Hilda shook her head, and parted her Queens style 'older sister' wisdom to Betty.  
"Sweetie, you're totally right. In the end, we're all gonna get old and wrinkly, and the rich people will be all plastic looking with their Botox, and surgeries, and all that will be left is what's inside, whether or not you're a good person. That really IS all that matters.  
But, in the meantime, as long as men continue to look at me, I want them to see the best looking me on the outside that I can present to the world. Because, bottom line, rich or poor, guys all think with their uh…" She put her hands over Justin's ears again, while he rolled his eyes, "Things."  
Betty laughed, "Things? For THAT you put your hands over his ears, Hilda? Yet you…never mind! I guess I do know what you mean, though."  
As they walked back home, Betty noticed 'Sal's Deli' and remembered the gyros Vincent mentioned in their conversation earlier and got an idea. There was more than one way to a man's heart, she thought.  
The next day, when she finished cleaning Daniel's loft, Betty looked into the mirror. She had already made sure she locked the bathroom door to avoid any repeat of him walking in on her. She quickly showered and changed into the pair of black pants and heels Justin had insisted she buy and slipped on the purple silk blouse, that made her give herself a double take.  
She still had the conditioning treatment on her hair that Hilda had given her and it did make it a lot easier for her to dry her hair and looked really pretty. Her eyebrows still stung, but the cucumbers had helped a bit and they did look much better. She tried to do her makeup like Hilda showed her, then when she had finished, she put in the contacts.  
She had to admit, she did look a LOT better. But the contacts made her eyes itch, so she kept her new knock off designer glasses in her pocket, just in case. She quickly gathered her things and put them into her bag and sighed, looking at herself in the mirror.  
She looked almost pretty, well, except for the braces, but if she kept her mouth closed... She sighed in frustration, and said to her reflection, "Betty, what are you doing? Do you really think any of this is going to make a difference? Daniel is sweet, but…you saw that Amanda! He's used to girls like her. You're still…you."  
Chapter 9: Chapter 9  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 9  
Betty hurriedly cleaned up after herself and walked out into Daniel's bedroom, almost running into him, "Hey! Hi, Betty. Sorry. I just came from the gym. I'm all sweaty. Oh, wow, the place really looks great, thanks! I hate to come in and mess everything all up again just after you cleaned."  
She laughed, "That's okay, Daniel. That's sort of the idea. You mess it up and I clean it, right? If you weren't kind of messy, you wouldn't need a maid."  
He nodded looking at her strangely, "Hey, you uh…got contacts, huh? They look really nice, Betty. You look pretty. Don't tell me you cleaned in that? I know you kind of cleaned in your nice outfit the other night, too, while we were talking."  
She shook her head, "No. I changed my clothes. I…hope it's okay, I took a shower, but I used my own towel and put yours in the wash. I just didn't want to be all dirty from cleaning if we went somewhere to eat. Unless you just want me to order delivery?"  
He shook his head, "No, of course not. Just let me jump in the shower really quick and change and we'll go out. You look…really nice." He started to walk slowly towards the bathroom and backed into the wall.  
She blushed a bit, "Thanks, Daniel. I'm going to be in the…uh…living…" her phone went off and she put up a finger, "room, sorry. I'll be out here when you're ready." She answered her phone. "Betty Suarez. Oh, hi, Vincent! That's great! Okay. Actually, I'm with him right now. Hold on. Daniel?" He had already gone into the bathroom, so she knocked on the door and he stuck his head out. "It's uh…Vincent Biancchi. He wants to talk to you."  
"To me? Really?"  
She nodded, and handed him her phone, smiling, "Daniel Meade here. Hi, Mr. Biancchi. Yes. Of course, I…well, yes, I think so, too. Really? I see. Okay. That sounds...great. I'd love that. I guess we'll see you then. Thank you." He handed Betty back her phone, looking stunned.  
"Uh, I don't really know what you did or said to the guy, Betty, or how a sausage and pepper gyro sandwich helped, but…thanks! I got the meeting! Or, I should say, you got the meeting. We have lunch with him Friday at one.  
Forget cleaning, Betty. I'll be good and keep everything clean here, I promise. I need you with me, though. He wants to meet you more than me, anyway. He was very impressed with you. Great work!" He hugged her, then slowly pulled away, looking down at her. "You're…really amazing, you know that, Betty?"  
She tried to remember to tell herself to breathe, but having him hold her and stand so close wasn't helping much. She nodded. "Well, I…guess I'd better let you take that shower."  
He cleared his throat, "Uh, yeah. Sorry. I probably stink after working out. I'll be right out. Thanks, again, Betty! I don't know what to say. You're the best."  
He disappeared back into the bathroom, shutting the door and Betty went into the living room, trying to calm herself down from chaos in her body the contact had just caused. She felt like her heart was going to beat out of her chest. This was not good.  
As much as part of her desperately wanted to work for him, for her own sake, should she should try and keep things strictly platonic, she wondered? The further she let herself get pulled into Daniel's world, the more she felt like she was on some alien planet, with no way back. She sank into the sofa, trying to catch her breath as she closed her eyes.  
Daniel leaned against the bathroom door, breathing a sigh. What the hell, Daniel? He berated himself. Why did you grab her and hug her like that? That was a bone-head stunt! She'll think you're trying to….make a move on her or something. What happened to keeping things 'strictly business' or at least being just friends?  
He kept thinking of how Christina had accused him of 'checking Betty out' and he had to be honest, he had been having a hard time NOT picturing her how he saw her coming out of her tub! The outfit she was wearing now was nice, but a bit low cut and it wasn't doing anything to help him forget what a nice body she had.  
He wondered how long she had the contacts and why she hadn't worn them before now. She had beautiful eyes. And her hair looked really pretty tonight. In fact, she looked amazing. She had put on more make up or something and it made her face…STOP IT! He shook it off and jumped into the shower, adjusting the temperature just a bit colder than normal.  
Betty got up, taking one last look at how good the place looked and backed into Daniel,  
"Oops! Hey, there. Somebody's a bit of a perfectionist, I see. Are you this picky about everything you do, Betty?" he teased as she pulled away and looked down, shyly.  
"Sort of, I guess. I can't help it. You're absolutely right. I am sort of perfectionist. I like things to be just right. I know everybody says I'm a control freak, but I just like things the way I like them, you know?"  
He nodded, "Sure. I understand. I mean, I'm not really that way myself, but I suppose I get it. I can be that way about some things. I think we all can get too wrapped up in the details and forget what's really important. Although, with my line of work lots of times, it's all about the details. Are you SURE you don't want to re-consider being my assistant, Betty?"  
"I just can't, Daniel! I…really appreciate the offer, but I don't know anything about fashion and I'd feel so out of place there." And I couldn't stand to see you with all those gorgeous women hanging over you constantly, she thought.  
He nodded, "Okay, that's fine. Maybe I'll go ahead and do what you suggested, and hire Amanda, at least for now. If I tell her I'm going to give her the job she's wanted, maybe she won't be so pissed up that I broke up with her and she and Marc won't be plotting against me, along with Wilhelmina, and Philippe, and god knows who else! I guess even she can't screw up getting me coffee and delivering my messages. I'll still have you, secretly helping me, behind the scenes.  
Although, I still want to find a way to give you credit for all your great ideas. And now, getting me a meeting with the man my brother, the great Alex Meade pissed off? Hell, my old man might even have to sit up and take notice of that one! You have no idea how much I appreciate all your help, Betty. Not to mention, listening to me dump all my problems on you."  
"That's what friends are for, Daniel." She smiled, noticing his dress slacks and purple shirt. Wow, the guy must really like purple, she thought, wondering if that's why Hilda insisted she get the shirt she was wearing.  
No doubt Christina had told her sister about the man's tastes. Still, maybe Betty had the blouse color right, but she was more than willing to bet his tastes in women veered more towards thin, leggy blondes.  
As if on cue, however, she noticed him glance quickly at her blouse then seem to catch himself and look away. If she didn't know who he was and his reputation, Betty would almost say he seemed nervous.  
He cleared his throat again, "So, anyplace special you'd like to go, Betty? I feel like I should reward you for the Biancchi thing. Do you like French food?"  
She nodded. "Sure. Doesn't everybody?" She lied. She wasn't really sure what French food she'd had before. She liked crepes. She shrugged. "Anyplace is fine with me. I'm starving! Sorry, I'm probably not supposed to admit that."  
He laughed, "Why not? I know I am! Okay, great, let's go!" He put out his arm and she hooked hers through it, thinking something about this felt so natural, so right.  
Once they were seated, Betty leaned over and said, "Daniel, this place is so fancy! You didn't have to bring me someplace so nice. What's good here?""  
He shrugged, "My pleasure, Betty. Uh, have you ever had escargot?"  
"What's that?" she whispered  
"Snails" he whispered back. She made a face, "No thanks" and he laughed, thinking she looked absolutely adorable right now.  
She tried to figure out the menu items and finally settled on a salmon quiche and salad.  
He teased her, asking if she was sure she didn't want steak tartare or brain soufflé, or fish mousse, or fois gras. She kept making faces as he described to her what each item was, until he got to the desserts. "Chocolate soufflé."  
She nodded, smiling, "Now you're talking my language, Daniel."  
He grinned at her, "I thought I had you pegged as a girl who could appreciate chocolate."  
She rolled her eyes, looking down at herself, "Well, I definitely eat too much, I guess. My father is a great cook, which is a blessing and a curse, I'm afraid. I have a hard time resisting his cooking sometimes. Plus, besides desserts, I often turn to potatoes in hard times."  
He laughed out loud. "Potatoes? That's very cute, Betty. I'll have to remember that one. Any particular kind of potato?"  
She shrugged, "Friench fries, or cheese fries, or…chili cheese fries."  
He nodded, "Sounds pretty good. You're making me hungry. I don't know about chili cheese fries, but let me see if they have pomme frites here. I'll ask the chef to make some just for you, even if it's not normally on the menu, okay?"  
Betty blushed, and they started talking about nothing and everything, laughing and finding they somehow felt like they had known each other forever. It was like time stood still when they were together. Even though she felt a definite spark when he put his hand on top of hers, when they flirted and talked, Betty wasn't scared and didn't have butterflies like she had when he had hugged her.  
She felt completely comfortable and was able to talk to Daniel, even teasing him about some things. After his inquiries, she told him about the Sal's thing with Vincent Biancchi, and how she had one of the sandwiches Vincent had told her he missed from the 'old neighborhood' and that had served as an ice breaker for her to get him to agree that Daniel was not his brother and to give him a chance to prove it in person.  
Daniel put his hand on top of Betty's on the table, "I really don't know how to thank you, Betty. I think Wilhelmina's going to freak out when she finds out I got a meeting with Biancchi after Alex the wunderkind messed things up with him and pissed him off years ago. I KNOW my dad is, that's for sure!"  
She smiled warmly, "It's really great to see you so happy and excited, Daniel. I feel like a lot of time, you seem a little sad. Is it because you miss Alex so much?"  
He shrugged, taking a drink of wine, "A little, I guess. I also think I just got used to the idea that I was never going to be good enough for my father, too. So, I didn't even try. I just gave up, going through the motions, acting like a spoiled little kid, because I was jealous of how much more my father loved him. Wow, I keep dumping this stuff on you, Betty. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…"  
She put her hand on his forearm, shaking her head, "Daniel, please don't apologize for opening up. I asked, after all."  
Daniel shook his head at her, "I seriously can't remember ever feeling this comfortable with anyone before, Betty. I'm really glad I met you. If I haven't told you yet, by the way, you look really pretty tonight." He picked up her hand and kissed it.  
Chapter 10: Chapter 10  
Made for Each Other  
Chapter 10  
Daniel looked at Betty when they finished dinner. She was surprised that he seemed to be watching her closely all night. It made her feel excited, but a bit nervous, too.  
He leaned forward, "Do you feel like dancing?"  
She nodded, enthusiastically, "Of course!" He took her to a very trendy club and they were let in at once. The music was loud and the club was extremely crowded. After they had danced for a few hours, Daniel gestured for them to go outside.  
At first, they started to take the car, but Daniel said quietly, "Do you want to walk for a bit?"  
Betty smiled and nodded, as he took her hand. She felt like it was on fire, and she kept stealing glances at him, only to find he was doing the same thing to her.  
Finally, after they had been walking silently for several minutes, they both said, "It's a nice night," then laughed at themselves.  
"Yes, it is." Daniel felt like he was sixteen, on his first date or something. He couldn't get over how this young girl made him feel so good about himself, so carefree, and optimistic about everything in his life. It was as if he could see himself through her eyes, hopeful, trusting and encouraging. She made him want to do anything it took to keep her thinking he was a good guy.  
He couldn't help but wonder about her little make-over tonight. She looked great, but…was it for him? Had she felt uncomfortable and like she wasn't good enough, was that it, he wondered? He hated that she felt that way.  
Still, he had to admit, he liked the changes she had made. She looked great. The only thing was, now he was finding it even harder to keep his mind out of the gutter. And Daniel made no mistake in telling himself, she was just a girl. A sweet, innocent, shy young girl; one that he really needed to stop obsessing over.  
True, she also was wise beyond her twenty-something years. She was brilliant, clever, witty, and incredibly sweet and kind. She helped him feel as if somehow together, they could conquer the world (at least, she could help him with the 'fashion' world). But, he was probably at least ten years older than her and anything but innocent. Daniel couldn't help be concerned that if he encouraged her, if he did what he was really tempted to do and pursued things with her, he would only corrupt her, and probably end up hurting her.  
She deserved someone far better and less worldly than him. So, he had to nip this infatuation they both seemed to be having in the bud. How could he do that, without hurting her, though? They had both been flirting all night. If he backed off now, she was bound to get her feelings hurt.  
He had been around enough women to spot that Betty liked him and he was pretty sure he was reading her signals loud and clear. He definitely didn't want to have a repeat of what he had just gone through with Amanda.  
He didn't want to close himself off to her altogether, though. He had already started to depend on the positive feelings he had whenever she was around. He was trying to think of a way that he could keep the intense chemistry they had as 'friends' without diving into the romantic deep end. At least, not right away.  
Maybe someday, he thought, not ready to completely give up on that as a possibility in the future. Perhaps when he felt a bit less like the big, bad wolf, to her little red riding hood, he reasoned.  
Well, first step, he realized, was HE had to stop sending her mixed signals himself. He was well aware of the 'rules' of dating and one of them was taking a girl to a nice restaurant and out dancing was pretty much a date.  
So, oops, there went that whole boss/employee/friend line crossed! Okay, well, maybe you don't hold her hand, and kiss it and tell her how pretty she looks, either, he sighed, realizing it was too late to go back on that one now, too.  
Hmmm…what else should he definitely NOT do to give her the wrong idea about what he wanted? Oh, yeah, don't put your arm around her! He deftly removed his arm from around her shoulders.  
Betty was trying to tell herself that Daniel didn't mean anything by the way he was talking to her and looking at her. He was just being friendly. He probably was just a little clumsy like she was sometimes, so him backing into the wall when he first saw her earlier had nothing to do with him being interested in her as anything more than a friend. He had stared at her all night and smiled a lot, and even seemed to be flirting.  
But, Daniel was a flirty kind of guy. He most likely did it without even giving it a second thought. Telling her how pretty she looked was just his way of being nice. Holding her hand was just his way of making sure she….okay, well that and him putting his arm around her she couldn't necessarily explain away, but…she was sure she was simply building things up in her head.  
They got closer to his building and he seemed to be having some kind of dilemma. He finally took a deep breath and leaned closely towards her face. He had pretty much given up on being Mr. Nice Guy at this point, and had simply given into his baser instincts and was 'going' with how he felt.  
And right now, he felt very much like he absolutely needed to feel those full, beautiful lips of hers on his. He laughed to himself, wondering if the braces would be a problem. He was pretty sure he could work around them. It was definitely worth a try, anyway.  
"Do you want to come up and have a cup of coffee before I send you home? Or I could…ride home with you, Betty? I hate to send you home by yourself. It doesn't seem very gentlemanly of me. And my mom raised me to be a gentleman."  
"Yes, I did, Daniel. So, may I ask where your manners are? Since when do you not return your mother's calls in a week? And you changed your locks? Hello, Betty is it? I'm Claire Meade, this young man's mother, if you can believe he wasn't just raised by a pack of wolves." A very well-dressed woman in her fifties extended her hand to Betty.  
Daniel was shocked to see Claire outside his loft. "Mom? What the heck are you doing here? I would have sent you a new key if I'd known you were…out. I didn't get any calls from you. You know I always return your calls. What number did you try? Sorry, yes, Betty, this is my mother, Claire Meade. Mom, this is Betty Suarez. She's a…uh friend."  
Betty didn't know why, but she felt like she had to clarify to his mother that she was not that kind of friend, "I just started working for your son as his maid, actually, Mrs. Meade. But, he was kind enough to take me out to eat and it was such a nice night, we took a walk and we just got back. It's such a pleasure to meet you!  
Daniel, it's sweet of you to offer, but there's really no sense in you making a wasted trip all the way to Queens. Besides, now that you're mother's here, I'm sure you'll want to catch up with her. I don't need the car, though. I'm used to the subway. Goodnight, Mrs. Meade. It was great meeting you!"  
"You, too, Betty."  
Daniel wasn't taking no for an answer, "No, Betty. I insist you at least take the car. I'll uh…see you Friday at Mesa's at one and we'll charm the pants off Biancchi, okay?  
Thanks again for all your help! Goodnight." He was extremely aware now that Claire was watching him closely, so he decided to repeat his earlier move and kiss Betty's hand. That way his mom couldn't give him crap about being too forward.  
Hell, that's what he got for 'going with the flow' and letting the bottle and a half of wine he had had and the two drinks at the club do his thinking. After his big inner reprimand to himself to keep things 'platonic' he had been ready to ignore his higher self and do what he always did, get as far as the girl would let him go.  
Although, who knew at this point. Maybe he was way off base with how Betty was receiving his overtures. He might not have gotten that far, anyway. He had only been thinking (planning) on a kiss for tonight, anyway.  
But now, his mom had to go and block him on that, even! Oh, well, it was probably all for the best. He definitely didn't want to mess this up. He really liked Betty and wanted to keep her as a friend (at the very least).  
His mother looked at him with a combination of amusement and annoyance. He figured the annoyance was most likely because he was reminding her too much of his dad right now, less than any real anger towards him personally so he tried not to take it that way. He gestured for his mother to lead the way as he unlocked the door.  
She looked around, seeming surprised and impressed, "Betty is your new maid, huh? Your place looks the cleanest I've ever seen it. You actually found a maid who does her job instead of…"  
"Mom…" Daniel warned.  
She laughed, "May I ask, what exactly were you planning on giving her as a tip before I cramped your style this evening, Daniel? Just a preview of coming attractions or the whole enchilada?  
Sorry, did that sound racist, did it? You know I didn't mean it that way. She's lovely, and seems actually sweet. Well-mannered and like she has a brain. A bit on the young and naïve side, perhaps. What is she, twelve? Braces? Are you trying to re-live your adolescence, dear? I assume since you employ her as a maid, you have seen her ID? Be careful, there, son."  
He shook his head, kissing her on the cheek. "Mom, you know I love you, but you really drive me crazy sometimes. It's my love life. I'm not Dad. I'm single. It's okay for me to sew my oats right now. Unlike him, when I do get married, I'll have it all out of my system. That's why I'm enjoying myself now. That didn't sound right. But, you know what I mean."  
"Married? Who said anything about getting married? I don't think I've ever even heard you use the M word, Daniel. Don't tell me little Miss Mexican Junior High girl there has got you thinking about hanging up your jock strap?"  
"MOM! Please! Have a seat. Can I get you anything? Have you eaten?"  
"Most people usually begin with the drinks first, Daniel. Don't you read Emily Post?"  
"Don't start. How's that been going? Did you check yourself out this time or did you and Dad actually have a conversation?"  
"He's been in one of his moods ever since SHE died. Almost impossible to talk to and always too busy for me. I'm sorry to be such a needy mother. I hate myself seeming to be that way. Depending on your children is a terrible embarrassment. Child." She corrected herself, and Daniel watched her eyes start to mist a bit, but she held it together,  
"It should always be the other way around. At least, until you become so senile that you don't care enough to be embarrassed anymore. And I'm not quite old enough or drunk enough for that yet."  
He handed her a cup of coffee and got one for himself. He was glad Betty had set it up for him. He hadn't taken the coffeemaker out of the box and had just been going to Starbucks before the other night, when she showed him how to use it. His mother raised her eyebrow, "You know how to use the coffeemaker, now? Did you take a night course?"  
"Funny, Mom. No, actually, Betty taught me how to use it the other night. She's…really nice. I like her. And before you ask, yes, I like her a lot. But, we just met a few nights ago and I want to try and help her get a job at Meade eventually, but I'm trying to figure out a way to bypass Dad. Maybe you could help me?"  
She smiled, as she leaned back against the sofa, sipping her coffee, "Wow, the girl can clean, and make coffee, and you like her? As I said, she's lovely, but hardly your usual dumb blonde type, Daniel. So, you finally met someone you have actually taken the time to have a conversation with before you jump into bed, is that it?"  
He nodded, sitting down next to his mother. He both hated and loved that she knew him so well. She was the only person in the world who he had always been completely honest with. Mainly because often, when he was younger, especially right after Alex died, she had been so drunk, he figured it didn't matter all that much what he said to her, she wouldn't remember anyway.  
But, even before that and now, since she had been doing so much better recently, he felt the need to have a confidante, and his mother had always been the one he most trusted to tell him what he needed to hear. He realized, that was probably the same trait he admired in Betty.  
She didn't pull any punches, either. She didn't pander to him or try to tell him what she thought he wanted to hear. She was honest with him, no matter what. Sometimes a bit too honest, perhaps, but he wasn't in a position to quibble.  
"I…well, first of all, that's not fair, Mom. I like brunettes, too. Can I be honest with you? I'm really trying to take it slow with Betty. I know I'm not really the kind of guy that is probably good for her, so I'm trying to talk myself out of feeling anything but friendship for her. She's too young. She's from Queens, she's naïve and sweet and totally innocent. In short, everything I'm not.  
I know I'll probably just end up hurting her and that's the last thing I want to do. But, I don't know. I can't explain it. She makes me really feel good about myself. She makes me laugh and she actually listens to me, to what I say.  
I know it's totally unfair of me to say this about women, because up till now, I've been just as guilty, but lately I've been so bored with these girls who just seem to want a quick roll in the hey, and then they're onto the next guy and we don't even say two words to each other. I like sex a lot. Sorry, Mom, but you know I do. I just really need someone to talk to once in a while, too. Does that seem so strange?"  
She couldn't resist, and let out a deep, low, laugh, shaking her head, "Well, well. Dare I say it, Daniel? It sounds to me as if you've finally met your match. Too bad she's still in pigtails and a school uniform. Perhaps she has an older sister more your own age?"  
"Actually, she does. Hilda. She's a single mom. She's nice, but…well, I like being around Betty a lot. She's really… special."  
She nodded, smiling silently, and drinking her coffee. Daniel's phone rang, and after a few minutes, with him getting more agitated, he finally came back over to his mother, "That was Dad. He said you 'disappeared' from the rehab facility. You didn't have permission to leave. I lied for you and told him I hadn't seen you. Please just tell me you haven't been drinking. Have you at least seen your sponsor?"  
She shook her head, "That idiot? Not likely. But, to answer your question, Daniel, no, I actually haven't been drinking lately. That's one reason I came to see you. I can't stand that place.  
If I have to sing kumbaya one more time again while discussing my 'feelings' with some pimple-faced child with a graduate degree in psychology who has never had a drink in his life, I may vomit!"  
Daniel laughed and sympathetically shook his head, "Fine. You can hide out here at least tonight, Mom. I'll book you a room at a hotel if you want tomorrow. But, please don't involve me any more than that. At least call him and try to talk reasonably?"  
She shrugged somewhat wearily, putting her cup in the sink, on her way to the bathroom. "I'll take a bath and get ready for bed. Maybe we could watch part of an old movie for a while? It seems like ages since we've talked. You can tell me all about Betty."  
"Sure, Mom. Just let me get changed first and grab some blankets. I'll take the couch. But, we can watch TV first for a while."  
"You're a good son, Daniel."  
Chapter 11: Chapter 11  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 11  
Daniel ended up talking to his mom until fairly late that night, mostly about his feelings for Betty, as well as his decision to end his 'arrangement' with Amanda, and his concerns about Wilhelmina trying to get rid of him at all costs.  
Claire cautioned him to definitely not trust the woman (she knew well how Wilhelmina had helped try and 'hide' Bradford's affair with Fey, among other things that made her hate the woman).  
The next morning, Daniel got called into an early meeting and was unsure how to handle things with his mother. He texted Betty first to make sure she wasn't busy. She called him back right away.  
"Good morning, Daniel. What's up?"  
"Whoa, you sound cheerful. Please don't tell me you're one of those 'morning' people? I heard they exist. But I never suspected you were one of them, Betty. You're so nice in the evening, how could you be both?" he teased.  
She laughed, "Guilty. I usually don't stay up really late, but I can do that, too, if I have to. Normally, I am more of a 'morning person' though, I suppose. So, how did things go with your mom last night? Is everything okay?"  
"Well, that's sort of why I called. I hate to ask this, since you've already helped me so much, but could you do me a really huge favor and check her into the Four Seasons? She kind of snuck out of rehab and I'm aiding and abetting, helping her hide out.  
I'll leave my credit card on the kitchen counter, just in case. I'm not sure if she has any ID with her. Thanks, Betty. I was going to deal with this myself, but I got called in to work early and I'm going to be tied up for a while. Listen, I sort of wanted to talk to you about us, Betty."  
"Us?" She gulped, wondering what he was going to say.  
"Yes. I realize I was kind of all over the place last night. I had a few too many glasses of wine and if I seemed sort of…inappropriate towards you, I apologize.  
I know we just met and I value our friendship, and respect you too much to do anything to jeopardize that. I'm really sorry if I got too…personal. I really enjoy your company. But I didn't mean to come on too strong. Please forgive me if I did?"  
She nodded, trying to catch her breath. So, he was telling her he had simply had too much to drink and wasn't really interested. Yet, he wanted her 'friendship'. She got the message. Loud and clear. She had been right all along.  
She really wasn't his 'type', unless he was drunk? Or possibly lonely, since he had just 'broken up' with Amanda. Fine, he only wanted her friendship. She could do that.  
She hid her disappointment well, acting just as cheery as before he had pulled the rug out from their budding romance, "Sure, Daniel. I'll be happy to help your mom. I'll come over to your place in an hour or so and get her checked in to the Four Seasons."  
"Thanks, Betty. Hey, why don't you two have a spa day there on me? You can get all relaxed and ready to meet Biancchi tomorrow."  
"Sounds great!" She said a little too enthusiastically perhaps. He caught her tone.  
"Betty, is…everything…okay? You're sure, we're okay?"  
"Sure, we're fine, Daniel." Okay, he definitely could tell she was not fine by the way she said that. But, he was trying to do the right thing. If he continued down the path he had been on last night, he may very well have had her in bed in no time and then what?  
He knew they needed to get to know one another better before anything happened between them. Not to mention, he was willing to bet Betty didn't have all that much experience dating yet and he wasn't sure if he was the right person to 'teach her'. Besides, she had said she just got cheated on by some idiot she had been dating pretty seriously.  
He wanted to do things right for once, and get to know her first, become good friends before they jumped into anything romantic. He cleared his throat and looked back towards his bedroom, making sure his mother was still sleeping, as he closed the door behind him and head out into the hallway.  
"Betty, I know you just got out of a serious relationship. And I just ended things with Amanda. Please don't think I'm… saying I don't…I mean, I really like being with you, don't get me wrong.  
You're fun to be with and I like spending time with you... a lot, in fact. But, I want to get to know you better. I'd like to be your friend. I…well, I guess I don't want to be just your 'rebound guy', you know what I mean?"  
She smiled, and she quickly agreed with him, "Thank you for saying that, Daniel. I want to get to know you better, too. I'd like us to be friends. And I'd love to help your mom. I don't have any cleaning jobs today anyway, so…I can come over whenever you'd like."  
He grinned, hoping his honesty with her had convinced her that he wasn't trying to simply 'blow her off'. In fact, if his mother hadn't been there when she was…he wondered if they would be having a very different conversation from his bedroom, instead of over the phone. Although, he still wasn't that sure even his proven charms' would have had an effect on this girl or not.  
He might have just as easily simply gotten slapped and rebuffed and had her end things completely for coming on too strong. He silently thanked his mother's impeccable timing, yet again. She definitely knew how to make an entrance and had frequently kept him from making huge mistakes in his life.  
He wished he could say the same for her life, however. Particularly where her marriage to his dad and her drinking were concerned.  
He knew a huge part of his mother's problems had spiraled out of control over two factors, his father's long-standing affairs, especially with Fey Sommers, and his brother's death. Over the years, Daniel had frequently taken his mother's side and had had heated arguments with Bradford's treatment of her.  
Since Alex's death, those arguments had often turned into months with neither son nor father speaking to the other, unless it had something to do with Claire. In a strange way, her struggles with drinking had often been the only thing that kept Daniel talking with his father at all over the past few years.  
That and when Daniel had finally come to the end of his trust fund and had to ask his father for more money, only to be told to 'suck it up and get a job like everyone else!"  
Daniel knew that only his mother's pleading on his behalf had prompted Bradford to give him the chance to actually see if he could be successful at Mode. The fact that her son taking the position the woman had assumed she would get was 'the bitch slap heard round the world' to Wilhelmina Slater, was merely a bonus to the Meade matriarch.  
When Betty arrived at Daniel's loft, she called out, "Mrs. Meade? It's Betty Suarez." She grabbed Daniel's credit card off the kitchen counter, where he had left it with a note thanking her with a smiley face. She knocked on the bedroom door, peeking inside. "Mrs. Meade? Do you want to go straight to the hotel now or would you like me to make you some breakfast first?"  
Betty was no chef, but she figured even she could do eggs, toast and coffee. Claire came into the kitchen yawning and stretching, fully dressed, since it was now after nine, and she had woken a while after Daniel left.  
She gave Betty a slightly knowing smile, wondering how in the world this little girl had so effectively charmed her son, reducing him to sounding a bit like a teenager with his first crush, something she had long since assumed was in his past.  
Her son, the man who normally had women with much more obvious appeal than Betty throwing themselves at him, and him not usually even bothering to ask their name. Not that she was happy about those traits in Daniel. In fact, it worried her frequently, since it reminded her far too much of his father.  
Still, after hearing Daniel rant about the little Latina beauty with the metallic smile and the slightly Pollyanna attitude, Claire determined to get to know the girl better, and see what it was about her that had Daniel so enamored.  
"Well, thank you, Betty. In fact, breakfast sounds wonderful, but unless I miss my guess, I'd say it is highly unlikely that my son has any food other than two-week old take out in that nice new refrigerator of his. I'm sure he doesn't have a clue how to work the stove or even microwave. My fault, I'm afraid. I've never been much of a Suzy Homemaker, myself. I'd rather organize parties than cook for them."  
Betty smiled, "Me, too! My father is the chef in our family, thank goodness, or we'd all starve. Although, sometimes I wish he weren't quite such a good cook! But my sister and I neither one can do much of anything in the kitchen. And I know what you mean about Daniel's disgusting habit of hanging onto leftovers way past their safety date. I threw away a bunch of really gross stuff in there yesterday.  
I did re-stock a little, though. I got him some staples, including eggs, bread, and milk. I showed him how to use his coffeemaker, too. He had a really nice, brand new one just sitting on the shelf."  
She smiled, "Yes, I know. I almost had a coronary when he actually offered me a cup of coffee last night. He told me you had showed him how to use it. He also tells me you are quite the little dealmaker. You helped him come up with a concept for the Fabia account, as well as using your similar background to get Daniel a meeting with this photographer that…didn't want to work with Mode?"  
Betty figured Claire probably wanted to avoid the subject of her eldest son's death even more than Daniel did and she certainly could understand.  
Personally, she tended not to bring up the fact of her mother's fairly recent death, still finding it hard to talk about, and most people never knew what to say, so it was better left unmentioned. Both women seemed to feel the unspoken empathy between them, however and managed a half-smile.  
Betty then started chatting away in her usual cheery manner as she got out eggs and bread and Claire went about making the coffee. Before long, the two had discussed various topics, including her sister's pregnancy in high school, and dealing with helping her raise Justin, her own struggles in trying to find work in her field and Claire even found herself opening up to the girl about her marriage and drinking problems.  
When Betty had told Claire about Walter cheating on her with Gina Gambaro, the older woman shook her head vehemently, "Do NOT take him back, Betty! Believe me, once you set the precedent that you'll put up with it, it gets harder and harder to draw the line anywhere and before you realize it, you've become a doormat.  
Besides, is this him? The one with permanent bed-head and no discernible chin? Please, dear. You can do quite a bit better than that guy! Why would you even consider him?"  
Betty shrugged, and also showed Claire her own 'before' picture, with her glasses, and less flattering outfits, hair and makeup. "This is what I looked like before. My friends and family are trying to talk me into getting those see-through braces, too. I don't know. I never thought about it, well, that's not completely true. I hated that I got made fun of in school because of my bad teeth and eyes.  
Still, I hate that people always judge others by how they look on the outside. That's one reason I am afraid to work at Mode. I know Daniel said he'd like me to be his assistant there, and I really want to work at Meade, but not there. Besides, I don't know if I could stand to…"  
Claire narrowed her eyes, "See the kind of women coming onto Daniel there? Yes, I can certainly understand that, Betty. That's one reason I never wanted to work with Bradford. I didn't want to see what went on. It might have driven me to kill one of them. Or both." She got a very faraway look in her eyes that made Betty a bit nervous.  
She handed her a plate. "Thank you, Betty. You know, I think I may have a solution for both of us. I have been giving some serious thought recently to starting a little project that would help me in my 'twelve-step program'. The last step involves sort of passing it on, or what was that movie, 'paying it forward' so to speak? That's supposed to help us stay sober by imparting the lessons we've learned.  
Lately, I've thought I might want to start a magazine for women of a certain age, that may have been put out to pasture by society, but aren't necessarily ready to go 'quietly into the dying of the light' quite yet. I may just be looking for a bright young junior editor to help me with some of my stories, with advertising and just coming up with fresh ideas to keep the magazine fresh and more relevant. Are you interested?"  
"You're going to start your own magazine?"  
"Yes, in fact, I actually own Mode, not Bradford. A fact that I had to remind him of recently in order to persuade him to give Daniel a second chance to get his feet on the ground. I think…perhaps Bradford and Daniel are both still grieving, each in their own way. But, my son and his father have often had difficulty communicating at all. Or showing any affection for one another. I often feel like I'm the only one who understands them both, like I have to be their translator, their 'middle man' to help them see that they really do love one another."  
Claire smiled suddenly, looking at Betty appreciatively, "Daniel is right, Betty. You do have a gift for making one feel as if they could tell you anything. So, shall we use my son's credit card to have a little fun? Actually, if I thought I could sneak in to my house without getting caught, I'd get my own, but I suppose you know I'm sort of a rehab runaway."  
Betty laughed, "Hey, I don't blame you. I think you're doing wonderfully, Mrs. Meade. You're my role model. Well, I've also been reading this great book by Sofia Reyes. It's given me a lot of self-confidence since I graduated from college and recently, especially since the cheating thing with my ex. Have you heard of it?" She pulled out her book and Claire looked at it, raising an eyebrow,  
"Girls like it on top? Provocative title!"  
"It's a metaphor." Betty defended.  
"I'm sure it is." She turned the book around to see the picture of Sofia on the back cover. "Interesting, Betty. You know, with a bit of proper clothing and the clear braces, you could pass for a relative of this woman."  
Betty looked at Claire like she must be crazy. "You're joking! You really think so?" She looked at Sofia's picture.  
Claire shrugged, "Well, besides the obvious Latina thing, you are both short, curvy women, with long, dark hair and eyes, a bright smile, and you're both highly intelligent. She seems more self-assured and confident, perhaps. But, then again, she's a bit older than you are, so I'm sure by the time you're her age, you will have far surpassed her in beauty and acclaim!"  
Betty grinned, "Thanks, Mrs. Meade. Daniel's a lucky guy to have you for a mother."  
Claire smiled indulgently, liking this girl more and more as she got to know her and definitely starting to see what it was about her that Daniel found so endearing. She made you feel good about yourself. She had a very hopeful, positive spirit about her, and she seemed to bring out the best in everyone around her.  
"Thank you, Betty. I happen to think my son is lucky for other reasons, as well. He certainly has improved in his taste in girlfriends."  
Chapter 12: Chapter 12  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 12  
After Betty and Claire had spent the afternoon at the spa at the Four Seasons, Betty checked her in and bid the woman farewell, with a hopeful heart.  
The Meades were such incredible people; she couldn't believe how kind they were, in spite of all the heartache they had experienced. Betty was flattered that both Daniel and his mother thought so highly of her.  
In fact, Claire had insisted on Betty coming to see her the next week to discuss becoming a junior editor for her when she started her new magazine for women approaching their retirement years, but still vital and anxious to make a contribution.  
For now, she went home, feeling relaxed and happy, and studied Vincent Biancchi's work so she could help Daniel get him for the Fabia account, and perhaps other work for Mode. She smelled her father's cooking when she got home and realized it had been some time since she and Claire had enjoyed the room service lunch at the hotel and she was starving again.  
"Mmmm…smells really good, papi! Am I too late for dinner?"  
"Well, everyone already ate, but you're welcome to have a plate, Betty. How did work go today?"  
"Great! I actually didn't have a cleaning job today, but I helped Daniel's mother get checked into the Four Seasons and she and I got spa treatments and had lunch there in her room, but that was a long time ago, so I'm really hungry again.  
She is going to be starting up her own magazine for older women and she wants me to be a junior editor and said there's a great program for me to enter once I've done it for a while and maybe if I want to take some writing classes, if I want to eventually become a contributing writer.  
She said even though her main demographic is women her age, she wants me to eventually think about writing a feature offering the young person's perspective. But she said I need to stop playing things so safe and go out and experience life a little, take some more chances. So, that's exactly what I'm going to do. She's such a smart lady, papi!"  
"Wow, mijah, you sound like you were really impressed by this woman!"  
"I was. I want to be just like her when I get older. Well, except…for the drinking part, of course. And she seems like she's got something on her mind that she wanted to tell me about Fey Sommers, but…"  
"Who's Fey Sommers?" her father asked, feeling suddenly a bit like he had turned on one of his telanovellas.  
Justin came in, very excited, and looking at his grandfather as if he had asked who Elvis Presley was, "Grandpa! Fey Sommers was the Editor-in-chief of Mode for years until she was cut down in her prime in a horrific fiery car crash! Don't you watch the news?"  
"Justin! That fashion show is NOT the news, okay?" Betty felt herself compelled to reinforce her sister's stance on her son's constant obsession with the gossip show, but she couldn't resist a small smile, which her nephew was wise enough to catch.  
"Sure AB. You know you're interested in it, now, too. Especially the stuff they say about Daniel Meade!" He teased, smiling.  
"What did they say about Daniel?" Betty felt her heart leaping out of her chest, worried that they had shown him lunching with some tall, leggy model while she had been spending the day with his mother.  
He seemed determined to watch her squirm. "Uh, I thought it WASN'T the news? So, what do YOU care?"  
"Justin! Please? Tell me what they said about Daniel!"  
"They said he has a new mystery girlfriend but nobody got an actual picture of the girl's face. They just got some pictures of the back of her as she and Daniel were dancing at the J-club and before that, they said eyewitnesses at the restaurant they were at said he was seen kissing her hand, and one source confirmed that she was seen going home with him to his Soho loft. I'm sorry, AB." He tried to keep a straight face.  
His grandfather and mother had been listening and couldn't understand his seemingly almost cheerful tone in telling his aunt such upsetting news. His mother narrowed her eyes, "Justin, honey, you need to be more respectful of your Aunt Betty's feelings. She cares about this man. It's not nice to rub that in her face about Daniel going out with some other woman!"  
Justin bit his lip, just like his aunt did when she was thinking, "Should I tell them, AB or do you want the honors?"  
"What do you mean, mijoh? Tell us what?"  
Betty blushed slightly, and said somewhat softly, "It was actually uh…me he was out with last night, papi. But, as far as going to his loft afterwards…, well, I mean, I did, but nothing happened! He was going to come with me here, but his mother was waiting to talk to him when we got there."  
The rest of the evening with her family was spent with Betty excitedly telling them all of the whirlwind date she had been on, but that they had both agreed they wanted to take things one step at a time, and develop their friendship before they pursued anything romantic, since both were coming out of relationships with other people.  
The next day, Betty arrived at Mesas, dressed in a very flattering Donna Karan little black dress that was far tighter than she was used to, but Justin had appointed himself as her 'fashion consultant' and he had basically told her she needed to 'lose the crazy colors and clashing patterns' as well as 'lowering the neckline and raising the hemline' on all dresses she purchased in the future.  
So, she stood at the restaurant, trying not to teeter in the sky high heels she had been 'advised' to wear, and hoping her contacts would stay in her eyes, without itching again, and pulling somewhat self-consciously down on the hem of her dress. Of course, when she did, that simply pulled the neckline down more, and she felt herself flush to see more of her own cleavage that she wasn't used to revealing in public.  
Daniel saw her and beamed as he came to greet her and show her to their table. He put his hand on the small of her back and led her gently to where Vincent Biancchi was already sitting. Daniel leaned over and whispered, "You're a knockout in that dress, Betty!"  
She blushed, "Thank you, Daniel. My nephew made me wear it. It's not too…uh revealing?"  
"Not from where I'm standing." Daniel grinned at her, and smiled even bigger as he saw her blush. God, she was cute when she was embarrassed, he thought.  
Vincent Biancchi rose as he saw them approach. He beamed, seeing Betty, and took her hand, kissing it. "You must be Betty Suarez. The girl who won my heart with a sandwich."  
She blushed again. This time, though, Daniel found himself not so pleased to see her redden. And what was the guy doing, kissing her hand like that? That was his move. Hell, it had even been on Page six and that stupid Fashion Buzz show about his date with Betty, even though nothing had really happened all that 'juicy'. Still, this guy had a lot of nerve, hitting on Betty right in front of him. He didn't know what kind of relationship they had. He had sort of presented her as his 'partner'. That could include a romantic relationship as far as Biancchi knew.  
Yet, the guy didn't seem to care. He openly flirted with Betty, talking about the 'old neighborhood' with her, and getting her to laugh at his stupid 'inside jokes' about Queens, the teachers at the high school they had both gone to, all things that Daniel couldn't relate to or understand, of course, making him feel like the third wheel, instead of the other way around.  
They finally talked business, and Vincent merely nodded in acquiescence about doing the Fabia shoot for Mode. "Sure, sure. As long as Betty here is my muse. She is the one I trust. No offense, Meade. I can see you're a lot better than your brother was to deal with, but…I'm still a little hesitant to put my name with your magazine until I know it will actually be something I can be proud of, you know what I mean?"  
"Of course, Mr. Biancchi. I completely understand. And as I mentioned, you'll have absolute creative control concerning anything we use. You get the final say as to how we present your work. So, do we have a deal?"  
He hesitated for a moment, then stuck out his hand, and grinned, "Yeah, sure. If you're smart enough to hire this little firecracker, I guess you are a lot smarter than your brother was; no offense. I mean, it's sad what happened to him. I'd never wish anybody any harm, of course. He just could be a real pain in the ass to deal with sometimes. He always wanted his own way."  
Daniel smiled, and nodded, shaking the man's hand, "Believe me, I know what you mean. He was my brother. We fought like cats and dogs most of the time. No offense taken. In fact, it's kind of a relief to be known as the 'better of the two brother's by somebody for a change. I'm usually known as the 'screw up'!"  
Vincent smiled, "Me, too. I think my old man was as shocked as I was when my stuff started taking off and I didn't end up in jail or something! And my whole neighborhood never thought I'd amount to much. Isn't that right, Betty? I'll bet your old man thought I was just some local thug, right?"  
She blushed, slightly, reluctantly nodding, "My father did say your dad brags about you all the time, though, Vincent."  
"Yeah, now he does. Before I made a name for myself, he didn't want to admit I was his kid, I think. I have an older brother, too, Daniel. So I know how hard it is to be in 'the perfect one's' shadow."  
Daniel nodded, relieved that the 'business part' of their lunch was over and happy that he now had a photographer for their concept. But, he was trying to think of a way to avoid telling Vincent know that Betty wasn't technically a Mode employee. Not that he didn't want her to be.  
Still, he hoped they could work around the fact, at least until he could find her a job at another of his family's magazines. A job she wanted. He found himself watching as she seemed to effortlessly charm Vincent Biancchi just as quickly as she had charmed him. She had a way of making people feel at ease that Daniel envied.  
He watched as she went to use the ladies room and he and Biancchi both rose and watched her leave. The man turned to Daniel, "So, what's the deal with you two? Are you…dating?"  
Boy, this guy didn't beat around the bush, did he, Daniel thought? Must be a Queens thing. "Sort of, yeah. We're going out. Betty's an amazing woman. I've never met anyone like her." There, he thought to himself. That should let the guy know I'm seeing her and he should keep his grubby paws off Betty!  
Chapter 13: Chapter 13  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 13  
Once Vincent left, Daniel and Betty celebrated with a bottle of champagne. Daniel called the office and told Amanda to send out the memo to all departments that the Fabia cover shoot would be done by none other than Vincent Biancchi.  
"Wow, Daniel! That's amazing. How did you get him to change his mind about working for Mode? Your dad's going to really be impressed. I'll send out the memo to everybody. When are you coming back to the office?"  
"I'm not. I'm celebrating with one of Meade Publications' newest employees. The same one who just helped me land the account with her quick thinking, not to mention had the idea for Fabia in the first place, Betty Suarez. I'll see you tomorrow, Amanda."  
"Daniel? Betty who? Who is…" but he had already hung up, grinning as he popped the cork and poured a glass for Betty, handing it to her.  
"So, I hear my mom has offered you a job as a junior features editor for her new magazine? I'm glad you are finally going to come to work at Meade, Betty. I don't care what floor you are on, as long as I can see you. This way, maybe we can meet for lunch sometimes? Besides, now I can come 'steal' your brainpower more easily to help me, since you seem determined NOT to officially be my assistant, even though you've really done MY job for me, so far."  
She nodded, toasting, "To the beginning of a beautiful friendship."  
He clinked her glass, winking, "Cassablanca, right?"  
She looked duly impressed. He shrugged, smirking, "I must admit, I just watched it with my mom. I normally prefer action films, or maybe zombie movies. But, it was good, I admit. And even I had heard of it and seen parts of it before."  
She smiled, shaking her head, "It's not just 'good', Daniel. It's a classic! I can see I'm going to have to educate you in some things."  
"Sounds promising." He smirked. She shook her head, blushing slightly, but gave him a warning look.  
"Daniel…you're the one who said you wanted us to just be friends. And I agree."  
He looked down at her, leering slightly, "That was before I saw you in that dress, Betty. Besides, I didn't like the way Biancchi was hitting on you. And you know, the press already thinks you spent the night. They know you came to my place, and they also know you checked into the Four Seasons with my credit card.  
So, we kind of look guilty anyway. I say, if you get accused of doing something, you might as well enjoy the benefits of whatever it is you're supposed to be doing."  
She rolled her eyes, "That doesn't even make any sense, Daniel."  
"Sure it does. Think about it. Why do you think I spent most of my adolescence and into my thirties partying hard and sleeping around?"  
"You are trying to act out to get your father's attention now that you're brother's gone, and before he died, it was because you felt you would never measure up, so you figured, why even try?"  
He nodded, smiling, "Very good analysis, actually, Ms. Freud. I so should have just paid you to be my shrink."  
"You had to see a psychiatrist?"  
"I went as part of a 'punishment' at Harvard once, actually."  
"What were you being punished for, exactly?"  
He took another sip of champagne, then shook his head, "Mmmm…you know, I honestly don't remember. I was in trouble a lot in school. Maybe…for hitting on my teacher? That was probably it, yeah."  
She rolled her eyes, hitting his shoulder, "Daniel! That's terrible. I do hope you're talking about college at least, and not high school!"  
He gave her his charming little boy grin, "I don't know, Betty. I had a lot of hot teachers in high school." He could see she looked shocked, "Betty, I'm kidding! Yes, it was college. Mostly." He didn't want to totally lie to her, either. For some reason, he felt like she could see right through him if he tried, anyway.  
She shook her head, drinking the rest of her glass and holding it up for him to refill, "To a new life…in publishing. Daniel, this may not seem like that big a deal to you to have your job, but it's a whole lifestyle change for me. I'm really excited!"  
He smiled; filling up her glass and clinking it with his own as he drank with her, "No, I told you, I already blew through my trust fund, Betty. I'm broke too, right now. Well, sort of. I still have my credit cards. But, I need this job to work. I am excited for both of us, too. It'll be great to see each other all the time at work, now."  
"Daniel, you know the job your mother offered me is more of a free-lance thing for now. I mean, it could develop into full time, but only if her new magazine is successful. I'm still going to be your maid, too. I'm going to do some editing and eventually write a feature, once I take some classes.  
Your mother believes in me, which is wonderful. But she also told me I need more life experience first, in order to be a more interesting writer. She said I should stop playing it so safe, and take some chances in life."  
"Sounds like a good idea. And fun. I could probably help you in that particular area, in fact."  
"Okay, Daniel. Can I just tell you something? You're sort of sending mixed signals here. You tell me on the phone you want to keep things platonic, just be friends, then you give Vincent death glares if he looks at me and now you're sort of…flirting with me."  
He shrugged, looking somewhat uncomfortable, "Hey, friends still flirt. It's allowed in the friendship handbook."  
She laughed, rolling her eyes at him, "The what? That isn't a real thing, Daniel. You just made that up."  
"No, I didn't. It's a real book. I have it at my loft. I can read it to you. It's in black and white."  
"Hmmm….is it right next to your great art collection you want to show me or your amazing CD's that you want me to hear? You forget, I've already been in your loft. Every room. Even your bedroom. Besides a big mess, all I saw was your stash of condoms in your nightstand. I definitely didn't see any 'Friendship Book'."  
He smirked, "You didn't know where to look. I'll have to find it for you. But, seriously, we're allowed to flirt. It's okay."  
"Fine. But you're not allowed to be rude to other guys who also flirt with me. You told me you don't want to be my 'rebound guy', great. But somebody has to be. If not you, then why not Vincent? He's from my neighborhood. We really got along. He's good looking, intelligent, talented, funny. And interested. At least, he might have been if you hadn't guarded me like a Doberman.  
I'm surprised you didn't pee on me! I'm not your property, Daniel. If you don't want to 'date', fine. But you can't have it both ways. You don't get to be my 'friend' and keep me from dating other men. It doesn't work that way. That's not fair, and you know it."  
He laughed, in spite of himself, "Pee on you? I'm sorry, Betty. You're right. I'm not being fair. But, seriously, you think he's good-looking?" He shrugged. "I think you can do better than Vincent."  
"Do you really want me to do 'better'?"  
"Honestly? No. I want you to date a bunch of trolls like Walter and see how great I am in comparison. But, you and my mom are both right, I suppose. I know you're young and you need to experience life.  
And unfortunately for me, that includes dating other men. I didn't say I had to like it, though. Why couldn't I have met you a few years from now, when you've already had more experience and found out that I'm the best guy for you?"  
She shook her head, and leaned forward, kissing him on the forehead. "You're sweet, Daniel. I love that you said that. But, I should really go now. Alone. And NOT to your loft. I'll still see you on Monday, when I come to clean, and I'll probably see you around Meade sometime next week, when I meet with your mother. She said she needs to go talk to your father this weekend about her idea and I think she could probably use a little moral support about now.  
I know she must be going through a rough time, and she's been doing great, not drinking. But it can't be easy for her. So, instead of hitting on your 'friends', maybe you should go be the good son she bragged to me about."  
He shook his head, "That's really below the belt, guilting me into checking on my mom, Betty. How do I know you won't go running after Biancchi right after I leave?"  
"You don't." She smiled and left.  
Chapter 14: Chapter 14  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 14  
"Who is at the door at this hour?" Ignacio Suarez mumbled as he was awakened by knocking, just as he was falling asleep in his easy chair, in front of the television.  
He shook his head, seeing that his grandson had once again, changed the channel. "And Justin! I thought I told you not to change the channel on me! You can't get the door?"  
"You also said you don't want me to open the door to strangers, Grandpa, remember? And I just wanted to watch a little of Fashion Buzz. You were sleeping, anyway."  
"I was not."  
"Yes, you were, Grandpa."  
"I was not. I was just…listening with my eyes closed, to rest for a minute."  
"You were snoring."  
"Don't be a smart mouth!" He answered the door, "Hello, can I help you, Miss?"  
"Miss? Well, I haven't been called that in some time. I don't believe we've met. I'm Claire Meade, Daniel's mother and Betty's new boss. You must be her father. It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Suarez. Betty has told me so many wonderful things about you, I feel as if I know you already." She put out her hand, smiling.  
He shook her hand and led her in, "The pleasure is mine, Mrs. Meade. Betty speaks very highly of you, too. Please, let me take your coat, and have a seat. Can I get you anything? I have some coffee, even though I'm not supposed to drink it. But, I can offer you some. How do you take it?"  
"Normally with vodka. Hold the coffee. But, I suppose I should just take the coffee. Black, thank you."  
"Of course, Justin this is Mrs.."  
Justin's eyes were wide and star-struck, "Claire Meade, of course! It's an honor, Mrs. Meade! I am such a fan. I'm so happy my aunt Betty is working with your son. I'm a huge Mode fan.  
I loved last month's issue with Christina Aguillera on the cover, before she went too trashy. You got her at just the right amount of chic. When she was between Disney princess and muddy mess. Isn't that what the article said? It was a great year for…"  
"Justin! Enough! You're giving me a headache and annoying Mrs. Meade." Ignacio shook his head, and ruffled Justin's hair, looking at Claire, "I'm so sorry, Mrs. Meade. He gets carried away with the fashion stuff sometimes."  
Claire had a highly amused expression, "That's quite alright. I appreciated your insights, Justin. You're very intelligent and really seem to know your fashion. Perhaps I can see if my son could use an intern this summer at Mode."  
Justin lit up, "Really? That's AWESOME! Thank you , thank you, thank you!"  
"Now, please go tell your Aunt Betty Mrs. Meade is here to see her, Justin."  
He ran upstairs, yelling. Ignacio shook his head and Claire laughed, watching with amusement. "He's adorable. I hope I can look forward to grandchildren someday. First, I need to get my son to stop running around so much and settle down, though, I suppose."  
Ignacio went into the kitchen and returned with her coffee, after taking her coat. "Here you go, Mrs. Meade."  
"Please, call me Claire."  
"Of course, and it's Ignacio. Here she is!" Betty came downstairs.  
"Hello, Mrs. Meade. How are you?"  
"I'm fine, Betty. I apologize for disturbing your family so late in the evening. I spoke to Bradford and we discussed what an asset you've been to Daniel already, not even technically working for Mode, so he agreed with me that if you would like to come work for me at Hot Flash, at least you'll be in the same building as Daniel and you can…perhaps continue to help him from time to time.  
He told me that he actually saw you the day you tried to interview as Daniel's assistant and heard you speak to the receptionist at the human resources desk and he was very impressed with your passion. He tried to find out more about you, but the idiot at the front desk threw out your application, so he'll be seeking employment elsewhere. I guess fate planned for you to help Daniel in some way, Betty."  
"That's wonderful, Mrs. Meade. So, Mr. Meade was supportive of your ideas?"  
"Not really at first. But when I once again reminded him that Mode is doing well, under Daniel's new leadership, I might add, and that that is in no small part due to your assistance, he suggested that perhaps you might be willing to help me get things going with the magazine.  
Even though we'll only be starting out as an insert, until we see what kind of subscription numbers we get, I'm still going to need lots of help before our first launch.  
But, don't forget what I told you, Betty. In order to write something that's interesting to your readers, you're going to have to stop playing it safe. That story you wrote about the prom shows promise; you're a good writer, overall, but it's still a bit naïve. You simply need more life experience to really grab your readers."  
Betty tried not to seem hurt by her mentor's criticism. She felt it was fair of Claire to say. She was right; she did need more experiences in order to have things interesting enough to write about. "Where should I start?"  
"Well, I hope you won't object, Betty. But, I made an appointment for you with an orthodontist tomorrow. He's going to trade out those metal braces for the clear ones. No offense, but when you're interviewing older people they may feel less likely to share intimate details with someone who looks as if they could be their grandchild. The metal ones make you look younger than you really are.  
We should also probably go shopping this week and get you some additional clothing for your new wardrobe. If you're going to represent me, I think a polished, professional look will help impress any advertisers.  
You're a beautiful young woman, Betty. I'm actually quite proud of Daniel for seeing that. As I said, his taste in uh…friends has definitely improved. I'm really relieved he stopped wasting his time with that rather ditzy blonde receptionist.  
You are really helping him keep his mind on his job, which I'm sure he's told you, is very important to him. I really believe this magazine will be a way for me to focus my energy in a positive way, as well.  
Staying busy will hopefully be a big help in my recovery. I hated that rehab facility, but I realized I need something besides gossip and tennis lessons to keep me busy.  
Helping you achieve your goals, and helping my son stay on his path are very good uses of my time, I'd say.  
Thank you for helping me to realize that all I needed is a purpose as a reason to stay sober, Betty. You're a very upbeat girl. You seem to bring out the best in every one. I couldn't believe how impressed Bradford was with your little speech. And he's not an easy man to impress, let me tell you!"  
Betty's eyes widened, "That's wonderful, Mrs. Meade! Thank you so much for everything! I'm so glad I met you and your whole family." She hugged her warmly.  
Claire seemed a bit surprised at first, but smiled, "Of course. We're all delighted to meet you, too, Betty. I'll introduce you to my husband officially Thursday when you start."  
Betty blushed. "Thank you. Mrs. Meade, can I ask your opinion about something?"  
"Of course, dear."  
"It's about Daniel."  
"Imagine my surprise." She said drily.  
Betty grinned, "On the phone, he said he didn't think we should date yet, because I'm too young and inexperienced, plus he didn't want to be my 'rebound guy', and all that.  
He said he thought maybe for now we should just be friends. I told him that sounds like a good idea. We get along great, and I think we should get to know each other better, too.  
I mean, even with Hilda and Christina helping me; look at me. I'm sort of surprised he even acted interested in me at all…"  
"Why not? You did say he saw you naked, right?" Hilda had come downstairs and was, naturally listening in on their conversation. She shook Claire's hand, "Sorry, I'm Hilda, Betty's sister."  
Claire shook the young woman's hand. "Good to meet you, Hilda. Wait, when did Daniel see you naked, Betty? And may I ask, what he was doing, leering at you in that condition? Do I need to hit him on the head?  
I'm so sorry. I sincerely hope he wasn't inappropriate with you at his loft? I have warned him time and again there is such a thing as sexual harassment! I swear, that boy! He's just like his father!"  
Betty shook her head, and gave her sister a dirty look, "No, you don't understand, Mrs. Meade. Daniel uh… came here, to talk to me. My family was out and I thought Hilda and her friend were home. The front door was unlocked and I was getting out of the tub, with my earphones in, listening to music.  
Daniel misunderstood me, and thought I was talking to him, when I heard him downstairs and yelled for him to come upstairs, so well…anyway, that's what happened. He sort of walked in on me by mistake. He was very embarrassed. It was a complete accident."  
"I see." Claire seemed somewhat dubious. "Well, in any case, I'm sorry if he embarrassed you, Betty."  
"He felt terrible. I think he was just as embarrassed as I was. It's fine."  
"I have to say, it does explain a lot. I think perhaps your sister is right, Betty. Seeing you that way may have well put certain ideas in Daniel's head prematurely.  
Well, I don't want to overstay my welcome. So, do we have a deal? You officially 'start' Thursday. As long as you're up to it. Here's the address of the orthodontist. He's supposed to be one of those painless kind.  
Then we'll do a bit of shopping together; and have a power lunch to discuss ideas for the launch.  
Welcome to Hot Flash, Betty. Meade Publications is thrilled to have you become a part of our organization! Don't forget, Mode is on the twenty-eighth floor. In case you get lost on your first day and need someone to show you around." She smiled, winking as she left, throwing her shawl over her shoulder.  
Hilda smiled, "I like her!"  
Ignacio nodded, "Me, too. She's a very classy lady. I'm glad she's your mentor, Betty. I think she's a better role model than that pretty woman whose picture you showed me who wrote the book with the sort of naughty title."  
"Sofia Reyes? She's amazing, too, though, papi! Don't get me wrong, I am so grateful to Mrs. Meade. But, Sofia is a good example to me that Latina women can become highly successful,…"  
"ATTRACTIVE, INTELLIGENT, CONFIDENT WOMEN!" Her father and sister laughed as they both parroted Sofia's catch phrase from her book that they had heart Betty repeat over and over.  
Betty rolled her eyes, "You guys! Fine. Whatever. I'm going to bed. Good night, you two smart alecs!"  
"Te quero, mijah. Good night!"  
"I love you, too, papi."  
"Hey, what about your sister?" Hilda yelled up the stairs, grinning at her father.  
Betty yelled back down, "Fine! I love you, too. If I HAVE to!" Betty joked.  
"Funny, mamita! I love you. Good night."  
Ignacio smiled at his two daughters and rubbed Hilda's back, shaking his head, "Good night!"  
Thursday, Betty arrived at Meade, and met Claire in her new office. Betty seemed very impressed. Claire got up and smiled as she saw her new employee.  
"Let me see, dear! Lovely. Just lovely! I can't believe the difference. You look five years older. Which in your case, is actually a very good thing. Hmm…come to think of it, I wonder if that would work in reverse for me. Perhaps I should consider orthodontia?"  
Betty giggled. "I think you look wonderful, the way you are."  
"Thank you, Betty. So do you. The rest of our office supplies should arrive shortly. I have a group of applicants coming at four. We even have some potential advertisers coming in tomorrow morning. That leaves us all morning and part of the afternoon to shop and I promise; that will include lunch. I assume you can still eat. Are you ready?"  
"Mrs. Meade, you're doing too much for me."  
"Nonsense, Betty. I feel like ever since my son met you, my family is finally coming together again. Daniel and his father have even begun talking to one another instead of screaming or ignoring each other, like they have for the past ten years or more. I truly believe you are the catalyst, too. Speak of the devil. I think I need to go freshen up, Betty. I'll meet you out in the town car. Take your time. I'll see you later, dear. Don't steal my employee for too long!" She kissed Daniel on her way out of her office.  
He stood against the doorway, smiling from ear to ear. "Wow! Let me see, Betty. They're awesome! You can barely even tell you're wearing braces anymore. Your smile is even more beautiful."  
She blushed, as she came and stood on the other side of the door, also leaning against it. He almost looked shy, glancing down at the ground, "So, has mom already got you running around with her?"  
She smiled, "Well, so far, all she's been doing is getting things for me. She had the orthodontist thing all set up for me yesterday and today she's taking me shopping and out to lunch. I feel so guilty. She's spoiling me."  
He shook his head, "Don't. She loves it, believe me, Betty. I think she always secretly wished I was a girl. When Alex and I were younger, she used to drag us shopping with her and tell us it was a clothing museum. I'm surprised Alex fell for it. I knew she just wanted to shop. Then, a few times when Alex was mean to me and dressed me up in girl's clothes; Mom just laughed about it and said I looked cute. My dad would have had a fit if he knew."  
Betty laughed, "I'm sure Suzuki St. Pierre would pay good money for video of that, Daniel!"  
He nodded, smiling, "Yeah, I'm sure Wilhelmina would, too. So, you're going to be out for lunch with my mom, huh? Too bad, I was going to ask you out. For lunch, of course. Just as friends, you know. If that's okay? Maybe I could get a rain check for tomorrow, then? I know a great sushi place around the corner. Do you like sushi?"  
She shrugged, "I don't know; I've never tried it. Is it better than French?" She blushed.  
"I thought you liked the French place?"  
She looked at him, with her hands behind her back, "Well, I…liked the company. The food was…interesting."  
He shook his head, "Okay, no French, it sounds like no to the sushi, too, maybe. How about Italian? Or Greek? Everybody likes those. I know you like Thai. And Chinese, and pizza, right?"  
"Daniel, like I said, anywhere is fine. It doesn't matter what we eat. I just enjoy being with you. As…friends, of course."  
He nodded, looking at her, trying to take in her new, even more improved appearance. She just kept getting hotter, he thought. He was in big trouble. He knew that much. She already was almost all he could think about.  
Now, he knew there would be some serious competition once guys saw how gorgeous she was, without the glasses or braces. It wasn't really fair. He liked her even when she had them, he thought. (Of course, seeing her naked the second time they met definitely hadn't hurt!)  
But it was much more than that. He liked the way she made him so happy. The way she encouraged him and made him forget about all the pressure of his new job and his father. Betty just made him smile, thinking about her. And that was without them even having sex. Hell, they had only been on one sort of…okay, well, so one definite date and one business lunch that turned into at least half a date, but no kissing.God, he really wanted to kiss her right now. Check out those new braces.  
Betty blushed, for some reason. She seemed to always be able to read his thoughts. He walked up to her, "So…have you tried out the new braces, yet?"  
"You mean, eating? Not really. I had soup last night, since they were still a little sore…."  
He got closer, "That's not what I meant, Betty." He put his arms on either side of her.  
She looked up at him, shyly, breathing rapidly now, "Isn't this…breaking your rules, Daniel?"  
He nodded, leaning closer, "Probably. But, I like breaking the rules."  
Chapter 15: Chapter 15  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 15  
Betty's heart was beating wildly as Daniel leaned forward, and touched his lips to hers. She tasted his tongue, like coffee and mint and felt his breath on her.  
She also felt like the room was spinning, out of control. This was insane; her boss was kissing her, or her former boss, now boss's son. God, he was a good kisser! She thought for a second of pushing him away, but who was she kissing…I mean, kidding?  
She knew she wanted this, since she first saw him at his door, standing in his underwear, looking so totally adorable (leaving aside the fact that he had just got done sleeping with that Amanda, of course!).  
He knew she wanted him to kiss her, of course, too. Betty wasn't very good at hiding her feelings. What was worse, she didn't really know if she was…well, doing it right. It sure felt right to her. But what did she know?  
"Excuse me; is this Bradford Meade's office?" Daniel reluctantly left Betty's lips and turned to see a very sultry, sexy Latina woman, in her mid-thirties perhaps, wearing black pants and jacket, with an extremely low-cut white silk blouse.  
Daniel looked down at Betty, somewhat guiltily, wondering what this woman must be thinking went on there.  
He knew he shouldn't have kissed Betty like that, but she was so damn irresistible, so…well, kissable, and he had never been much good at self-control.  
Betty, meanwhile, startled the heck out of him, practically knocking him down to get to the woman and shake her hand warmly, grinning like an idiot.  
"Sofia Reyes! Oh, my God! I have your book. It's like my career bible; I've read it four times.  
It's amazing! It's such an honor to meet you in person. I'm Betty Suarez. I'm so sorry; I have to go meet Mrs. Meade right now downstairs. She's waiting for me."  
"Yes, I see you're in a big hurry." She glanced at Daniel, who was wiping Betty's lipstick from his mouth, still trying to figure out who this woman was and why Betty was acting so goofy about her.  
The name sounded vaguely familiar. Had Betty mentioned her before? One of the times when he had been pretending to listen to her but was pre-occupied watching her beautiful lips, maybe?  
"It's a pleasure to meet a fan, Betty Suarez. Maybe you could just point me in the right direction? I'm a little lost. This place is so huge!"  
"I can take you to my dad's office. Hi, Miss Reyes, was it? I'm Daniel Meade." Daniel stuck out his hand, somewhat sheepishly.  
Sofia nodded, smiling, "Yes, I believe I've heard of you. Daniel Meade, do you prefer to be called 'himbo' or man-whore?"  
He cleared his throat, and shrugged, clearly embarrassed, since his behavior with Betty just then didn't exactly do anything to change her obviously poor opinion of him.  
Betty left, looking a little rattled, and unsure of herself, "Great! Daniel can take you to Mr. Meade's office, then. It was a pleasure meeting you, Miss Reyes! I hope we can talk sometime."  
Sofia nodded and smiled at Betty, "I'd love to, Betty. And please, it's Sofia."  
As Betty left, Sofia looked at Daniel, "Sweet girl. I assume she IS at least eighteen?"  
Daniel rolled his eyes, annoyed at her implications, even though he hardly could blame her for thinking he was every bit the lothario, since he had somewhat convicted himself, it seemed. He led her towards the elevators,  
"Yeah, I know she seems young, because she's so enthusiastic, but she's very smart and wise beyond her years, which are several years past eighteen, in fact.  
I think Betty's twenty-two or three. Apparently she thinks you're famous or something. I've personally never heard of you, though, sorry."  
She smiled, as they got on the elevator, "I'm not surprised. My latest book was a best seller. I'm sure you don't make it to the bookstore that much."  
"Excuse me?" Daniel was clearly taking her bait and pissed off at her jabs at him.  
As they waited to get to the floor of his father's office, several people got on and back off the elevator, and one young man accidentally spilled coffee onto Sofia's blouse.  
"Shoot!" She cursed in Spanish and seeing she and Daniel were the only ones left on the elevator, she took off her jacket, then started removing her blouse, as Daniel began,  
"Uh, I actually have women's clothes up at Mode in The Closet you could…what are you doing?" His eyes got huge as she stood there, in just her bra for a second, then he couldn't help grinning.  
"Well, this was the quickest first date I've ever been on!"  
She rolled her eyes, "I doubt that. You seriously think you have a shot with me? What about Betty?"  
She put on her jacket, without the blouse, and buttoned it up as far as it would go. Still very low-cut, of course, but it worked for her, evidently. Daniel was sure his father wouldn't mind her wardrobe malfunction.  
She got off the elevator, leaving Daniel standing with his mouth open, "It was…interesting meeting you, Daniel. I think I can handle things with your father on my own, thanks. Say hi to Betty for me."  
He just shook his head, as the doors closed, "What the hell was that?"  
Betty had rushed down to the waiting town car and Claire resisted the temptation to ask Betty how things had gone with Daniel, especially since she smelled her son's cologne strongly on Betty, so she didn't need to ask.  
They rode silently for several minutes, then Betty started asking questions about Hot Flash and what Claire wanted her to do there.  
From what Betty had gleaned, it still seemed as if she was only going to be a consultant, and a contributing editor, with a few stories once she had proven herself, and perhaps taken some more courses, or even completed that Young Editor's thing Claire had mentioned.  
"I'm sorry, Mrs. Meade, but it still seems like this will only be part time. Is there something else I'm going to be doing?"  
"Well, actually, I know you aren't interested in Mode, but I'm sure Daniel will want to at least continue to uh…brainstorm with you, perhaps over lunch or something.  
There's a young girl Bradford has in mind named Ruthie who may work out as Daniel's assistant, it seems. And my husband and I thought you might enjoy working with Sofia Reyes in the new magazine she's going to be heading, called MYW. He's meeting with her today and…"  
Betty looked concerned,  
"What's wrong, dear? I thought you spoke so highly of the woman?  
She has been pitching her ideas for a new magazine for 'the regular girl, not the hipster fashionistas' as she says for some time now, and once I told him you thought so highly of her book, he said he'd agree to meet with her and consider it."  
Betty looked somewhat shamed, "That sounds amazing, but I…don't think she's going to have that high of an opinion of my professionalism, though."  
"Why is that? Have you met her?"  
She nodded, "Just now. Before I came downstairs. I was still in the office and…uh, Daniel was talking to me first, but then he um….kissed me."  
The older woman burst out laughing, "Daniel was kissing you when this Sofia woman walked in?"  
Betty nodded, "Yes! It was so embarrassing! She's my idol, and well, I can't imagine what she must think of me, now."  
"If she knows my son at all, and I'm sure she's at least heard of him, believe me, she won't think any less of YOU, my dear!"  
Betty nodded, "I suppose. I wanted to crawl in a hole."  
"Really? I'm surprised. I heard my son was a pretty good kisser! I'll have to tell him to try harder next time." She laughed.  
Betty blushed, "Mrs. Meade! Please…this is embarrassing enough. I didn't mean that!"  
Claire just laughed harder, "Oh, my dear, you see, this is what I'm talking about. You need to loosen up! You're too inhibited for your own good.  
If you want to become an interesting writer, you have to let go and live a little, experience life, so you'll have some interesting things to write about!  
See, that was funny; meeting your idol while your uh…ex-boss is kissing you. Something readers might enjoy hearing about."  
Betty nodded meekly, "I guess so. I never thought of it that way before. You're right, though. I need to go out and experience my life. Stop being so provincial, right? Do things that are…different, unexpected, bold!"  
"Exactly! I mean, don't get arrested or anything, but go out and have a good time. Enjoy your life, Betty. You're young, and beautiful and smart. You deserve to have a good time.  
Just make sure you aren't like me, and don't drink so much that you don't remember the next day what it was you did that was fun!" She smiled. Betty nodded, as they went into Selfridge's.  
While they had lunch, Betty saw Vincent Biancchi heading towards their table. She stood and hugged him warmly, "Vincent! Hey! How have you been? I'm really looking forward to seeing you at the shoot next week.  
Oh, Vincent, this is Daniel's mother, Claire Meade. Mrs. Meade, this is Vincent Biancchi."  
Claire stood and shook his hand, "I know him by reputation, of course. I've seen your work, Mr. Biancchi. It's amazing. It's a pleasure to meet you."  
Vincent nodded, and smiled, "Thanks, but please, call me Vince. You say Mr. Biancchi and I think you're talkin about my old man, you know?  
Betty, it's great to see you again, you look even better than last time, what's different, oh, yeah, the braces. Wow! You look fantastic.  
Too bad you and Daniel are seeing each other. I'd be tempted to ask you out myself."  
Betty narrowed her eyes, and looked at him strangely, "Oh, you misunderstood, Vince. Daniel and I just work together."  
"Really? Well, that's kind of funny. Because, believe me, I asked. And HE told me, you two were dating."  
"Oh he did? I don't know why he would tell you that. But it's not correct. He's my…boss's son. Period. We're friends, but that's all."  
Claire smiled, wondering what Betty was up to, but also amused that Daniel had obviously been threatened enough by this man to lie about his relationship to Betty.  
She figured, a little competition would do her son some good. Besides, Betty needed more experience under her belt, and this fellow seemed willing enough to give it to her. Oh, that sounded dirty, even in her head, she thought.  
It took Vincent all of three seconds to grin, and raise his eyebrows, "Well, in that case, let me ask if you would mind accompanying me out tonight, Betty? I have to go to this showing of another photographer's work at seven.  
We could get something to eat afterwards, maybe do some dancing, whatever turns you on. Sound good?"  
Betty nodded, smiling, "Yes. It sounds great! I'd love to go with you, Vince. Thank you. It was great seeing you again."  
"Yeah, you too, Betty. I'll come pick you up if you like…"  
Betty shook her head, "No, it's fine. You could…pick me up at the office. I can change there and it's silly for me to go all the way back to Queens, then us to come back here that early. There wouldn't be enough time."  
"Sounds great. I'll come pick you up at your office at six thirty, then?" He kissed her hand and smiled.  
She nodded, and beamed back at him, "I look forward to it."  
Claire and Vince nodded as he left. When Betty sat down, she shook her head, "I wonder why Daniel told him that."  
"I don't. He was trying to stake his claim on you, Betty. He was afraid of the competition. Vince is a nice looking man. Daniel was clearly jealous."  
Betty shrugged, "So, you think I should do this? This isn't weird for you?"  
Claire shook her head, "Why? To see Daniel have to work for a girl for once in his life? Please, dear, I'm looking forward to seeing the look on his face."  
As they returned to the Meade building, Betty looking flushed and happy, Claire looked at her, thinking how wonderful it would be to have a daughter.  
As much as she loved her boys, she enjoyed spending time with Betty, imparting her womanly wisdom and she could sense that Betty had equally enjoyed having an older woman to spend time with, perhaps even more so since losing her mother at such a young age.  
Once they got back to her office, Betty stopped to use the restroom and Claire was going through the bags, examining some of their purchases.  
She turned in her chair thinking Betty had returned, taking out a red dress to show her, "I couldn't resist, Betty. I got this one for you when you were in the dressing room. With your boobs it will look amazing!"  
"I'll say!" Daniel walked in and kissed his mother on the cheek, as he went to look at the dress Claire grabbed away from him. "Hey, Mom. How did it go?"  
"What are you doing here, Daniel? Haven't you embarrassed the poor girl enough for one day?"  
"What do you mean?" he knew it was probably no use trying to play innocent with his mother, of course. He figured she got the scoop about him kissing Betty out of the poor girl the minute she got into the car earlier. Betty couldn't hide her emotions and his mother was a master at ferreting out information.  
Claire just shook her head, "Please, don't even bother, Daniel. What were you thinking?" She hit him on the arm.  
"Ow! Mom, that hurt! Hey, Betty. So, did you ladies buy out every store in Manhattan?"  
Betty blushed seeing Daniel there. "Hi. Uh, sort of, I guess."  
Claire came to her rescue, getting up and pulling Betty along with her, and brushing past Daniel. "We have to go speak to your father, Daniel. If you'll excuse us."  
Daniel stuttered, "Okay, but…I wanted to see if you were busy tonight, Betty."  
Claire nodded, and called over her shoulder, "Yes, she is. She has a date with Vincent Biancchi. The one you lied to and tried to tell you were dating Betty."  
Daniel grimaced, watching them rush out the door. Shit! So, they had run into that guy? Of course, he thought. Just his luck!  
Betty tried to catch her breath on the elevator, "Mrs. Meade! Why did you say that to Daniel?"  
The woman shrugged, "Why not? It's true, isn't it? Besides, Daniel is interested, believe me, dear. I've never seen him follow a girl around like a puppy so much since he was in the ninth grade and had a crush on some girl he saw in drama class.  
What was her name again? She wouldn't give him the time of day, was already dating a senior on the football team or something.  
Poor Daniel had it bad. He looks at you the same way. It's about time. He has girls throwing themselves at him too much.  
It gives him a big ego, like his father. He needs to be put in his place a bit. He's a good man, deep down. But he's gotten what he wanted way too often when it comes to women.  
He needs to learn sometimes good people are worth waiting for. He'll appreciate you more that way."  
"I guess you're right. Vincent is really nice. But…Daniel IS a good kisser." Betty blushed. She shouldn't have said that to his mother, she knew. But she couldn't resist.  
Claire had such an easy air about her. She made you want to say something to shock her. But nothing ever seemed to.  
Claire smiled, "Yes, as I said, so I've heard. Well, here we are, dear. I think I'd leave Daniel's kissing abilities out of this meeting, if I were you. Bradford has probably witnessed that a few too many times as it is!  
We want to convince him of yours and Daniel's professionalism right now, right?"  
Betty smiled and nodded, "Right! Thank you…for everything Mrs. Meade."  
"Don't thank me yet, Betty. You haven't met my husband."  
Chapter 16: Chapter 16  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 16  
"Please, Betty, have a seat." Bradford Meade's office was every bit as intimidating as he was, Betty thought as she followed Claire to the mogul's desk.  
Claire winked at Betty, to put her at ease and went to sit on her husband's lap. "Claire!" he seemed surprised, but smiled. "Uh…not setting a very good example for Betty here, are we, dear?" he cleared his throat, seeming somewhat embarrassed by his wife's behavior, but smiled, nonetheless, and patted Claire's bottom as she started to get up and pulled her back down on his lap again.  
Claire grinned. "Fine, dear. We'll be good in front of company. Although, we have been married long enough. I think it's safe to say, Betty's a big enough girl to handle seeing a little healthy PDA between old married people." She kissed Bradford sweetly on the lips. He cleared his throat, but clearly enjoyed the gesture by his wife, smiling and patting her hand.  
Claire leaned over and stage-whispered to Betty, "He just doesn't want to encourage this kind of behavior with you and Daniel, dear."  
Betty nodded, blushing to see Claire, acting so carefree. She knew she and Bradford had had their share of marital problems, not the least of which had been Fey Sommers' on again, off again affair with her husband, but after all, they WERE still married, she thought.  
It made her smile, thinking fondly of how affectionate her father and mother had been in the past. She was happy to see Daniel's parents still obviously loved each other very much, in spite of all they had been through together over the years.  
Betty smiled and listened as Bradford told her he had spoken to Sofia Reyes and decided to support her idea to launch a new magazine, targeting the 'real woman' and he asked her if she thought she might be interested in working there.  
Betty grinned, from ear-to-ear, "Oh, definitely! I would LOVE that! Thank you for thinking of me, sir!"  
"Well, it seems your name keeps coming up lately, young lady. First, I witnessed myself your spunk and determination, then I kept hearing from Daniel and Claire how smart you were and what great ideas you had…it seems you were made for Meade Publications! We're happy to have you aboard! I'll make sure and introduce you to Miss Reyes and…"  
Betty shot Claire a worried glance and Claire stifled a laugh. Bradford furrowed his brows, "I'm sorry, am I missing something, ladies?"  
"Oh, nothing, dear. It's just that Betty and Miss Reyes already met today by accident. It was brief, but I'm sure Sofia won't forget our girl Betty here when she sees her again, right, Betty?"  
Betty just nodded, grateful that Claire hadn't ratted her out. She stood, and shook the man's hand, "Thank you, again, Mr. Bradford, Mr. Daniel, I mean MEADE!" She stammered, turning bright red as she left. "Bye!" She ran out of the room, before she tripped or something even more embarrassing, berating herself, under her breath, 'Stupid, stupid, stupid, BETTY!"  
"Bet-ty! It's so good to see you without Daniel's lips attached to your face. I can see you much better, now! I was just on my way up her to formally introduce myself to my new assistant, and here you are!" She leaned over, as she put her arm around Betty,  
"Listen, I have a little project for you, Betty. I have an idea for a GREAT first issue, and it involves you. I hope you don't mind playing a tiny practical joke on Daniel, though. I know you two are such good FRIENDS."  
"Uh, friends, right. What kind of a practical joke? How does it involve me?"  
"Oh, you'll see. First…what are your plans tonight?"  
"Well, I sort of have a date at an art gallery, then dinner, and dancing."  
"With Daniel?" She seemed taken aback.  
"No…I told you, Daniel and I are…"  
"Just friends, of course. And he was kissing you be-cause? Please, Betty; it's fine! Believe me; I know exactly what kind of man Daniel Meade is. He is insolante, egostistic…"  
"No, he's not! Really. That was just…he…I just got new braces. I had metal ones before and he…"  
She raised an eyebrow, clearly amused at Betty's stammering, "Is an orthodontist on the side, who was performing some kind of mouth-to-mouth exam-ination?" she suggested, teasing Betty.  
"Of course not! It's hard to explain."  
"I'm sure. So, if you're date's not with Daniel, may I ask who it IS with? And how come you weren't kissing him? I see I've got a player girl working for me, eh? I'm impressed, Betty!" She smiled, encouragingly as they walked towards the elevator.  
Once they had gotten on, they heard a male voice, "Hold the door, please! Betty, hi! Oh, Sofia, hello."  
Daniel got on, looking uncomfortably at the two women. He couldn't help but notice they were roughly the same height, give or take a few inches, due to Sofia's boots being slightly higher than Betty's heels, but he also didn't fail to notice they had other similarities. Anatomically-speaking, they could have been related, he thought, smiling to himself.  
"Like what you see?" Sofia had seen him checking out hers and Betty's 'assets', of course. He knew he was hardly discreet sometimes.  
He merely cleared his throat, ignoring her, "So, Betty, how did it go with my Dad?" he put a tentative thumbs up. "Well, I hope?"  
She nodded, "Yes, I'm going to be working for Sofia as her assistant at MYW, her new magazine."  
"You're the editor?" he looked at Sofia, seeming surprised.  
She nodded, smiling, "Yes, I felt just as surprised when I heard YOU were an editor, but then of course I remembered your last name and it all made sense." Her words, dripping with honey tones, did nothing to veil her sarcastic vein.  
She smiled, looking at Betty, and putting her arm around her, protectively, "So, Betty, you never told me, who is it you have your date with tonight? I knew it couldn't be Daniel, since you said it was at an art gallery, and he probably doesn't know where one is!" She narrowed her eyes, challenging him.  
He started to lash back at Sofia, but he heard Betty say quietly, "Vincent Biancchi."  
He looked away from Sofia and down at Betty, seeming somewhat hurt, "You're going out with THAT guy, Betty, really? I thought my mom was just teasing me. Seriously, you've…got a date with him?"  
She nodded, "Well, I…sort of said I would. Your mom seems to think I need more experience to be a better writer, so…"  
"EXPERIENCE?" Daniel was clearly not getting what she meant here, she thought, flustered as she immediately realized her faux paus in using that word.  
"I mean, well, you know, going out, to an art gallery, seeing photographs, and going to nice restaurants, and dancing, you know, just learning new things, meeting lots of different people. That's all."  
Sofia seemed to be enjoying the show. She pulled Betty along with her as the elevator doors opened, calling back to Daniel, "Who knows, maybe Betty and this Vincent can have a quick first date like we did earlier, Daniel!" she grinned as the doors shut on his crestfallen face.  
Betty stopped and looked at Sofia, "Wait, you and Daniel had a DATE earlier? For lunch or something? He asked you out?"  
"Not really. It's complicated, Betty."  
"I'm smart. Enlighten me, please." She eyed the older woman, suddenly and Sofia laughed slightly, seeing that Betty was clearly threatened.  
"Well, you got asked out, Betty, remember? But, no, I was only teasing him about something he said before. He thought he was being clever when some idiot spilled coffee on my blouse and Daniel said it was the quickest date he'd been on. He's such an arrogant ass; I told him he didn't have a shot with me."  
Betty suddenly remembered the woman had been wearing a white blouse earlier when she had seen her, "Yes, Where IS your blouse?"  
She shrugged, "I threw it in my office to take home and have it cleaned. Look, I know you SAY you're just friends, but CLEARLY you like Daniel, let me just assure you, Betty, I'm NOT interested. I'm just messing with his head, that's all. He's the kind of man who always thinks he can get whatever woman he sets his sights on. I'm thinking of taking him down a notch, knocking the wind out of sails. You could help me, if you are willing to tease him a bit."  
"I don't make it a habit to tease men, Sofia. I admit, I haven't had as much uh…experience with you at dating or flirting or whatever it is you plan to do to Daniel, but I think you can count me out, actually. I actually think he's a nice guy.  
He may have been a player in the past, it's true. But he's got a good heart. He means well and he did just break off a sort of casual fling with some girl he had been seeing. He's really trying to do a good job at Mode right now."  
"I see, so he's become a monk? You think because he dismissed some girl he was flinging with and he's a little more serious about pleasing daddy Meade, he's all of a sudden not interested in sex, Betty?"  
"I…didn't say that."  
"Well, who exactly did you have in mind for him to have sex WITH? You? Or the fling-y? Or some stranger?"  
"You mean some stranger like you?" Betty eyed her carefully.  
"But, I'm hardly a stranger now, am I? Although, he's easy enough to lead around by his cajones, I can tell you, Bet-ty. I still think he'd be perfect for the story I have in mind, from fling to ring in sixty days. "  
She looked up, clearly teasing Betty, seeing her reactions, "But…I suppose since I like you, and I can see, you definitely like HIM, I'll take him off the top of my list. It's mainly, that I did a lot of research on this and his name came up quite a bit, plus, since I'm going to be working here now, I figured he'd be an easy target, I mean subject for my article. But, relax, Bet-ty.  
It wouldn't work, anyway, now. I can see, he was clearly checking out YOUR butt and uh…assets a lot more than he was mine earlier, so…I don't think he'd be jumping through my hoops all that easily, anyway.  
But, I still need a subject for my article. Is this Vincent guy you're dating tonight a player? Maybe this would be good experience for you? I could teach you how to 'tame' the wild beast and have him eating out of your hand in no time!" she smiled.  
"I don't want to get Vince to propose to me! I'm just going on one date with him! Besides, I don't think I could do that, Sofia. Is that the only kind of articles you're going to be doing at MYW? I don't know if I want to work for a magazine that resorts to breaking some innocent guy's heart just for a catchy article!"  
Sofia was clearly impressed by Betty's honesty, "Hmm…well, maybe you could help me think of some more lead stories, Betty. But, just in case, no worries, I still have a few other names of men in the area that I think might work for my article.  
How about this person. Have you heard of some guy named Beckett Scott? He might know your friend Vincent, and Daniel. It says here he went to Harvard with Daniel and he's a photographer, so…he could know Vincent, too.  
He's fairly well off, too. His family doesn't have the connections Daniel's does, of course, but the more I thought about it, I don't know how my new boss would like me messing with his baby boy's feelings, anyway."  
Betty shook her head, "I've heard Daniel talk about him, but I haven't met him yet. I don't think he goes by Beckett. He has some strange nickname, I think."  
"Becks?" Sofia read from her desk, looking over her paperwork.  
"Next time you talk to Daniel, see if you can get me an introduction to this Becks, will you, Betty?"  
Betty gulped, "Uh, ok-ay." She decided secretly that she would first warn Daniel what her new boss had in mind for his friend before she threw him in the lion's den, however.  
From what she remembered, Daniel's stories of Becks seemed to indicate the guy was indeed, a MAJOR player, but still, she didn't agree with Sofia's attitude that guys who had broken girls' hearts in the past weren't at least entitled to a jury by their peers before hanging them up by their uh…cajones.  
Chapter 17: Chapter 17  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 17  
Betty felt like her feet were on fire. Her eyebrows had thankfully, gone numb after Hilda's tweezing had reached the point of no return, leaving Betty feeling as if she were going to pass out after a while.  
The contacts were in place and she had gotten used to them, at least. The dress Christina had given her from her own 'collection' of new designs was beautiful, although Betty wasn't really used to all the attention she was suddenly getting from men.  
Not that she totally disliked it; it just felt strange. Betty Suarez, the ugly girl with glasses and bad teeth, who had gotten picked on all through school, and well into high school and pretty much ignored in college, until she met Walter, at least, was actually turning heads (in a GOOD way, for a change)! Who knew?  
She looked down at her uh…cleavage and still felt a little weird showing so much. It made her feel a bit like her sister, though this wasn't that obvious, thankfully. Hilda certainly never seemed uncomfortable showing off her assets to the world.  
And Betty noticed that even her idol, her new boss; Sofia Reyes certainly made the most of her figure. She still was wondering how this 'date' had occurred that seemed to involve Daniel and Sofia no longer wearing her blouse!  
Betty was feeling somewhat disappointed in meeting the woman whose book she had practically memorized, and who she had idolized for the past year and a half. She even had written a paper about Sofia in college.  
She had always been so impressed with how far the woman had come, and thinking she was a great role model for a young Latina girl. Now…she wasn't so sure she wanted to emulate her anymore. The things she had told Betty about that 'fling to ring " had her concerned. She needed to talk to Daniel.  
Tomorrow, perhaps she would. Tonight, was about following Claire Meade's advice, and getting out and experiencing life.  
"I must have died and gone to heaven."  
"Excuse me?" Betty looked at Vincent. He looked very nice, in black pants, a black shirt and a leather jacket. He had a cool sort of elegance about him, Betty thought. He put out his hand to take hers as she came down the stairs of the main lobby at the Meade building.  
He grinned, holding his hand over his heart, "I've got my very own angel, right here. Wow! You look…fantastic, Betty Suarez from Queens!" He kissed her hand and she blushed, giggling slightly.  
"She sure does. Hey, Vincent. How are you? Oh, hi, Betty. You're leaving ? So soon? I really wanted to go over some things for a meeting with Fabia tomorrow, but…that's right. I almost forgot. You're going to be working at that new magazine now. So, I guess you won't be available to help out on the shoot, anymore after all, huh?" Betty looked up as Daniel came walking confidently over to her and Vincent.  
Vince looked rather annoyed, "Listen, Meade, I know you lied to me about being Betty's boyfriend. So, if you really want to work with me, maybe you should do yourself a favor and just step aside, okay? The lady and I have plans for tonight. Ones that don't include you, I'm afraid."  
Betty was getting nervous. The last thing she wanted was Daniel and Vince fighting over her. As much as part of her couldn't deny a little thrill that two hot and interesting guys like Daniel and Vincent both seemed jealous of each other over her, she didn't want to jeopardize things with Vincent professionally because of her.  
Daniel seemed slightly defensive, "I didn't lie. I simply said we had dated. We did. I never said I was her…boyfriend. Betty, aren't you cold? Do you need a jacket? Here, take mine." He started to take off his suit coat and offer it to her.  
She looked at him, furrowing her brows. Now he was acting like her big brother or something? Or a jealous boyfriend. Vince was right, Daniel wasn't her boyfriend.  
He was the one who had told her he didn't want to get 'involved' right now, so what did he expect her to do? Wait around forever?  
Let him be her, what had Sofia called him? "mouth inspector" or whatever, whenever the mood suited him? This wasn't fair.  
He needed to stop hovering over her if he didn't want to have a real relationship, because he thought she was too young or inexperienced, or whatever.  
She definitely wasn't interested in having whatever kind of kinky 'fling' he and Amanda had apparently had going previously.  
She still wasn't sure why he had broken up with Amanda, if he didn't intend on well…starting a real relationship with her, Betty thought.  
No matter what Claire seemed to think, the fact was, Daniel obviously was afraid to get involved with Betty because of her youth and innocence, so…she needed to go out and experience life, on her own.  
"Daniel, I'm fine, thanks. I don't need a coat." She handed him back his coat.  
Vincent put his arm around her, somewhat protectively. "If Betty's cold, I'll make sure and warm her up. I'll see you Monday at the shoot, Daniel. Good night."  
Daniel could tell when he was being dismissed. And he was smart enough to read Betty's signals of not rocking the boat with Vincent over her. He looked at Betty, somewhat wistfully, and nodded, "Right. Good night. Have a good time, you two. I guess, I'll see you around."  
Now Betty felt like she did when she looked at that website with pictures of cute puppies and kittens. Daniel totally had that whole puppy dog eyes thing down, she thought, guiltily.  
"Uh, maybe…you could meet us at the club, later, Daniel. I know you like to dance. The gallery and dinner should only take us a few hours, and then we're going to uh…S.O.B.'s, didn't you say it was called, Vince?"  
He nodded. "Sure, stop by there at eleven or so, and maybe we'll bump into you, Daniel. Take care."  
Daniel mumbled something Betty didn't quite make out and left. She felt a sting when she saw him leave. She couldn't help thinking she might have a better time going out with him. But…she had already agreed to Vince's invitation. Besides, a night in Manhattan, with an interesting and accomplished guy like Vincent would be fun and exciting, she told herself.  
They arrived at the art gallery, and Betty had to admit, several of the photographs they saw didn't really make a lot of sense to her. She could see the artistic beauty in some of them. But a lot of them seemed to be fuzzy, out –of-focus pictures of trash cans and garbage. Vincent laughed, leaning over and whispering,  
"Artistic statement on the plight of the city's urbanization, my ass! If you ask me, the guy's a pretentious jerk who ran out of film and accidently took some pictures of alleys when he was drunk and is trying to pass them off as some social statement!"  
Betty giggled, and whispered back, "I have to admit, that's sort of what I was thinking, too, Vince. But, I just figured I wasn't artistic enough to understand them. I'm glad you weren't impressed, either. It makes me feel better."  
He shrugged, "Yeah. Lots of times, you know, art is totally in the eye of the beholder. It's so subjective what is artistic and what's crap, sometimes.  
I got told my work was crap over and over until some people who had the right pull in the city took notice of me and thought I was good. It's definitely WHO you know in this city, especially in the art world, Betty.  
See that guy over there? Zacchary Boule? He's just this goofy geek playwright. He had a motorcycle accident, and got his publicist to show him goin out with a hot model or two and now, all of a sudden he thinks his stuff don't stink! It's nuts!"  
Betty noticed the young man. She sort of thought he looked cute. Maybe it was his black framed glasses that she could relate to, but she squeezed Vincent's arm, grateful for his knowledge of the art world.  
She liked the way he had of cutting through the ostentatious art world and relating things back to her so she could understand them, perhaps because he had grown up so close to her.  
She felt his arm pull her tighter to her. She smiled, "Thank you for bringing me, Vincent. This was really interesting."  
"Is that code for boring? Sorry, Betty. We can leave in a minute, I promise. I just had to put in an appearance, you know? Be seen here to show my support for another up-and-comer in the field. I'm starving, though. How about Greek?  
I know a good little place on fifty-second that has amazing food! I swear, it smells like the old neighborhood. That reminds me; how did your old man take the news that you were goin out with me, tonight? Did he warn you what a bad boy I was?" he smiled slyly.  
She nodded, and shrugged, "No, well, yes, sort of, I guess. He just said…"  
"He was surprised I didn't end up in jail. Yeah, I figured as much. I didn't used to have such a good reputation in the neighborhood. That's one reason I have a sort of chip on my shoulder sometimes, I guess.  
It's like, no matter how well I do here, in Manhattan, I'll always be Vinnie Biancchi, the trouble-maker back in my own home town, you know? I'll never be good enough for a lot of the people I grew up around, no matter how good I make it here in Manhattan! "  
"At least, your father is proud of you, though, right?" She couldn't help but think about Daniel's confession to her about his father's lack of faith in him over the years and how he felt as if he would 'never be good enough' for Bradford.  
"I suppose so. " He pulled her out; hailing a cab, "So, let's go eat, okay?"  
They had a quiet, but enjoyable dinner, talking about old times at Queensborough High School.  
Finally, they headed to the dance club, and by now, Vincent had become aware of how bad off Betty's feet were hurting her. He looked down, sympathetically, "Betty, I don't see how you're going to dance in those shoes, babe.  
I can tell your feet are killing you. We don't have to go anywhere else tonight. I had a great time, we can just call it a night and save the dancing for when you got your dancing shoes on. It's fine."  
"But…I don't…well, actually, you're right. My feet ARE sort of killing me. Thanks for understanding, Vince. I did have a great time. This was fun tonight. I like having my own artistic interpreter to explain things to me that I was totally lost about." She smiled.  
He squeezed her hand, "No problem, Betty. I liked feeling like I actually knew something that you at least pretended to be interested in!" She looked at him, feigning surprise, but he shook his head,  
"Come on, admit it, you found the whole thing kind of boring, didn't you? Sorry, I hate when I have to go to things like that. I shouldn't have dragged you along; I just really wanted to see you tonight and I couldn't get out of it."  
"No, I really did enjoy it!" she insisted.  
He laughed, "Well, I'm still not sure I believe you, Betty. But you're sweet for coming with me and I had a much better time explaining the stuff to you than I would have had if I had to go with somebody else or by myself, that's for sure!"  
She smiled, "Thanks, Vince"  
"So, let me get you home. It'll be fun to see the old neighborhood."  
After a few hours, Daniel realized he had been 'stood up' at the club. He had gotten there fairly early, deciding he wasn't really hungry.  
He dolefully nursed a few watered-down drinks and danced with some annoying women, vying for his attention, then eventually took the hint, and started to head home.  
As he sat in the back of the town car, somewhat dejectedly, he picked up his phone. After a silent argument with himself, he finally called the number he had been staring at all evening.  
She answered quickly, "Hello?"  
"Hey. So…since you're answering your phone and he's not, I guess I at least don't have to worry about that 'experience' thing as much as I thought I might?"  
"Dan-iel." She sighed.  
"Betty." He tried to make a joke, "What, I was worried when you stood me up at the club. I'm a man-whore, haven't you heard, Betty? I'm a himbo, a major player, a real catch.  
And yet, I find myself waiting around all night, just hoping to see you again, even if it was with another guy.  
And then, you two don't even show. Talk about feeling…dissed! You know, I did get hit on tonight. A lot. I got offers, Betty."  
She couldn't help but smile at his display of hurt feelings.  
"Why didn't you go home with one of the girls who was hitting on you, then?"  
"Come on, they…weren't you. You've kind of wrecked the whole slutty but stupid thing for me, I hope you know."  
"I'm sorry, Daniel. I didn't know you'd be waiting for us. I would have called. Vince dropped me off a while ago. My feet were killing me in these sky-high heels Justin talked me into wearing. Vince had mercy on me, and noticed how miserable I was."  
"Your date was miserable?" he sounded hopeful.  
"NO! I just meant, my feet were. The date was fun."  
"Oh. I see. That's…good, I guess. I'm glad you had a good time, Betty."  
"You don't sound glad."  
"What do you want me to say? I…this sucks. Look, I know this is unfair of me. I get that I'm not allowed to monopolize you. You're young and beautiful; you deserve to go out and have fun and spread your wings and all that. I just…really like spending time with you."  
"Well, that's great. I like spending time with you, too, Daniel. But, I don't know how that's going to work, unless we can find a way to just be friends right now."  
"I can be your friend. I WANT to be your friend."  
"Really?"  
"Sure."  
"Without…hitting on me?"  
"Well, no. I didn't say that."  
"Daniel! Well, I guess we're back to square one."  
"What? Can't we be friends…with, I don't know, benefits or something?"  
"NO! I'm NOT Amanda, Daniel. I don't work that way, sorry."  
"Okay, okay. No…uh…sex. I promise. But, I really need to see you. Can't we at least find some kind of a compromise?"  
"What kind of compromise?"  
She happened to look out her bedroom window and saw a town car pull up outside her house in Queens.  
"Can I…have one of your great hugs?"  
"You're…here?" She smiled, as she walked down the stairs, in her pajamas quietly, so as not to wake up her family and went outside, seeing Daniel, standing in his overcoat, holding his phone still.  
He put the phone down, and with his hands stuffed in his pockets, he walked towards her step, sheepishly looking down. He stood in front of her, "I'm here."  
She smiled, as he got closer, "You…think I'm beautiful?"  
He grinned back at her, "Believe me when I say this, Betty. You're beautiful. Inside and out." He pulled her in for a hug.  
Chapter 18: Chapter 18  
Maid for Each Other  
A/N: Okay, you mushy girls, fair warning: this gets pretty 'melty'. Not enough to warrant a ratings change, I don't believe. Let me know if you think I've overstepped it, though. That may be a little ways off, I'm afraid. Sorry, you know I have to throw in some obstacles soon, so enjoy this last little bit of Detty fluff!  
Chapter 18  
Betty couldn't help feeling like she was a teenager, sneaking out of the house like this, at midnight. She ran back upstairs, while Daniel waited nervously in the hallway.  
She came down, minutes later, with her hair up in a high ponytail, wearing jeans and a sweater, with her blue puffy coat.  
She couldn't help feel excited, going out with Daniel on a sort of late night 'date', something she knew her sister and other girls had done in high school, but no one had ever asked her before.  
Daniel grabbed her hand and led her to the waiting town car. She said hi to the driver and had a conversation with him, asking him about his son and wife. Daniel looked at her strangely then smiled, putting his arm around her in the back seat. "You're friendly with everybody, aren't you, Betty?"  
She shrugged, looking around the town car, playing with the radio, like a kid in a candy store. "I can't believe you came to Queens at midnight in a car that costs more than my house, Daniel. Heck, I'm tempted to jump you myself!"  
He raised an eyebrow, "Feel free, Betty. I promise, I won't even put up a fight."  
She rolled her eyes, and smiled, hitting his arm, "So, where to?"  
He held his stomach, "What places are still open this late? I'm kind of hungry. I didn't eat tonight. I uh…went to the club early."  
She looked at him, "Really? I'm sorry, Daniel. I had no idea…"  
"I'd be waiting for you? Yeah, well, I'm sort of surprised, myself, Betty. I guess you've kind of got me under your spell or something. Believe me, normally, I would have just gone home with one of the girls I danced with at the club.  
I don't know if I like this…hold you have over me. I'd feel like I'm cheating on you if I did the things I'm used to doing with other girls.  
You give me your sort of disappointed look if I tell you I'm thinking about going out drinking with Becks. Yet, tonight, I was left alone and sad while you got to go out with Vince! Something's seriously messed up with this situation!"  
She smiled, "First of all, Daniel, no one said you would be cheating on me if you do whatever you feel like doing. You're a free man. Nobody's telling you not to do whatever you feel like."  
"That's just the thing, though, Betty. Since I met you, I really only feel like I want to be with you."  
She couldn't help but melt a little, having him tell her that! She looked into those amazing eyes of his, and felt her heart racing a mile a minute.  
He looked somewhat hurt, and there were those darn puppy dog eyes again, "So, Betty, seriously, do you like that Vince character? You said you had a good time. Uh…did he kiss you?"  
She took a breath, "Daniel…"  
He put up a hand, "I know, I know. None of my business. But, still, I have to know, Betty. Did he?"  
"Yes." She couldn't help teasing him a little. She had to admit, it made her feel amazing to have this kind of power over a man like Daniel.  
"Really?" he looked heartbroken. She couldn't do it to him, no matter how much of a 'player' he had been in the past, she thought. He was just too darn cute, when he looked all sad and hurt.  
"On the cheek." He brightened immediately, especially when she demonstrated by kissing him briefly on the cheek.  
He grinned, looking a bit like a boy with his favorite toy, "Oh. Okay. So…did he ask you out again?"  
"Not really. He just said 'next time' we went dancing to wear more comfortable shoes. But he didn't ask me out again for a specific night or anything."  
"I see." His eyes suddenly seemed clear and Betty felt herself drawn to him a bit too much for her own good right now, feeling her insides doing flip flops.  
"Daniel, I know a place right around the corner from here that's open late on Fridays. They have late night karaoke and great pizza. You get half off the pizza if you sing, too!"  
He furrowed his brow. "Sing? But…Betty, I'm rich! I don't need half off. I don't want to sing!"  
She pulled him out of the car, "Come on, it'll be fun! It's so close to Christmas, they're bound to have something you recognize."  
He groaned, but couldn't help smiling at her enthusiasm.  
They got their pizza, and wine and just as Daniel was getting comfortable, Betty told him they were up next. "You really are into this, aren't you, Betty?"  
She grinned, "It's fun! Look at that couple up there! They're so cute together. I always see them here, and they are kind of bad singers, but…"  
"Kind of? They're tone deaf, Betty!" He made a face.  
She laughed, "Hey, I'm not that great, either, just to warn you. I don't really care, though. It's a way to unwind. I love seeing them look at each other, though. You can really tell they love each other.  
It's like; they'd do anything for one another. I don't think he liked singing at first, but you can just tell he'd do anything to make her happy, you know?"  
She sighed, "I wish I knew what love like that felt like! Somebody you'd swim across the East River in January for, you know?"  
He smiled, "Believe me, Betty. You'll find it, I'm sure. Heck, I already waited all night, getting stood up and then drove across town for you, after turning down other girls.  
Does that count as at least a start? I don't know. I think I might need a little incentive if you want me to swim the East River, though." He got close, and touched her cheek with the back of his hand.  
She smiled, leaning forward, "What, more mouth-to-mouth examinations?"  
"Mouth-to-mouth what? What's that? Sounds pretty good to me!"  
She laughed, "It's what Sofia said you were doing to me when she walked in on you kissing me."  
"Hey, you were definitely kissing me back, Betty, and you know it! Don't make me out to be the lecherous boss here."  
"Oh, I forgot, you were just 'breaking the rules', right?"  
He shrugged, smirking as he took a sip of wine, "Like I said, Betty, I didn't hear you complaining. In fact, I think you kind of wanted me to kiss you.  
Admit it; ever since you saw me in my boxers that first night, you've wanted me. And you were absolutely flirting with me on our date; don't tell me you didn't know exactly what you were doing to me."  
"Doing to you? What was I doing to you? We just…talked."  
He leaned across the table, getting closer to her, till she felt his breath on hers, and could almost taste his lips, then the couple ahead of them left the stage, and she jumped up, "It's our turn!"  
"Great!" he said, sarcastically as she pulled him up on stage with her.  
He looked at the screen and laughed, as he saw what she had picked, and picked up the microphone, taking another gulp of wine, to steel himself, as Betty sang, "I really can't stay…"and he smiled, singing, "Baby, it's cold outside."  
"I've got to go away…"  
"Baby, it's cold outside."  
As they finished singing, they ran off stage, laughing at their own bravado. He shook his head, "I can't believe you talked me into doing that, Betty! That was crazy!"  
Her eyes were bright and she was laughing, as she shoved his chest lightly, "Admit it, you loved it, Daniel! You've got a good voice!"  
He smirked, as he grabbed her hands, and 'warmed them' in his then kissed them, looking up into her eyes, "So, can I talk you into 'staying' with me tonight? It IS cold outside, 'baby'"  
He led her outside, and they walked towards the Brooklyn Bridge, the town car following behind them.  
She found herself breathing hard and wondering about his suggestion. God, a girl could so get lost in Daniel's eyes, she thought.  
She saw exactly why so many women had fallen victim to his charms. She had to find a way to quiet her racing pulse. Suddenly, she remembered something from earlier,  
"Uh, I have a question for you, Daniel. How did your little 'date' with my new boss go today? And do you want to tell me how she ended up not wearing her blouse afterwards?"  
He raised an eyebrow, "Why Betty, are you actually jealous of Sofia? I admit, she is kind of hot!" he grinned, rather liking the fact that he had finally seemed to get a reaction out of Betty, instead of the other way around.  
She stuttered, "I…don't change the subject, Daniel. Answer the question, please! How did she end up with her blouse off?"  
He shrugged, "Somebody spilled coffee on hers in the elevator, and she took it off when we were alone. That's when I teased her and said it was the fastest first date I'd ever been on. That's all there was to it.  
I didn't touch her, Betty! I mean, I didn't mind her taking it off, honestly. But…she's got nothing on you. Although, she was still wearing a bra, at least, so…to be fair, I didn't get to see as much of her as I've seen of you." He grinned.  
She blushed, "I…see. Well, I was just wondering what happened, that's all. So, she seriously just took her top off in front of you?"  
He nodded, shrugging, not really seeming that shocked, as he took another step. "Yeah.  
"Does this happen often, Daniel? Women taking their clothes off in front of you?"  
He took a step towards her, "It's happened before. Not usually in an elevator with someone I just met, though. So, she's your boss, huh? Maybe I should read that book of hers you're so fond of. I admit, the title is sort of attention-getting, that's for sure!"  
She seemed a bit defensive, "It's a metaphor."  
He raised his eyebrows, "Having met her, I doubt it!"  
She put her hand on top of his, "Daniel, I have to warn you about Sofia. She's…well, she's very ambitious. She sort of had her sights set on trying to get you to propose to her."  
He looked shocked, "What? Propose? Why would she want to get me to do that? Are you serious? She doesn't even seem like she likes me!"  
"It's for some article she's doing. Fling to ring in sixty days! I think she has some system to get guys she thinks are players to fall for her and she was going to use you for her lead story.  
She was asking me about your friend Becks, when she gave up on you."  
"She gave up on me? How come?"  
She looked at him, "Why, do you WANT her not to give up on you?"  
"Of course not, Betty. Don't be ridiculous. That's not what I meant. I have no intention of asking that woman to do anything with me. She's sort of a…well, a bitch, sorry.  
I mean, she's okay to look at, but I was just wondering what gives, that's all. Why did she pick me in the first place for her article and what made her change her mind that I was no longer a good candidate for her little matrimonial scheme?"  
"She thought you deserved to be 'played' I guess because you break girls' hearts and she wanted to put you in your place. And she changed her mind because…I asked her to sort of. And she thinks I…like you."  
"Oh, I see. She THINKS you like me? But you don't, huh?"  
"I…do. I mean, I don't want her to mess with your head and try and flirt with you to get you to like her when she doesn't even really care about you. I wouldn't want to see you get hurt like that."  
"Well, thank you, Betty. I appreciate your concern for my feelings. But, you know, you going out with Vincent…isn't really making me feel all that warm and fuzzy either.  
I don't give a damn about that woman. She can't hurt me, because I don't care about her. You, on the other hand…" He put his hands on either side of her face, as they stood on the bridge.  
She made the huge mistake of looking directly into those eyes of his, "Daniel…" she said, somewhat breathlessly.  
He just nodded, and mumbled, "Mmhmm?" as he leaned in closer to her and brushed his lips against hers, then quickly deepened the kiss.  
After a few minutes, he looked down at her, somewhat amused at her expression, "Betty?"  
She stood there, sort of dazed, feeling as it time was standing still. She mumbled, "Huh?"  
He chuckled, "You…uh, said my name? Did you have a…question?"  
"No. I…" She pulled him down for another kiss, and this time, there was no doubt that she was fully participating, as she ran her hands through his hair and kissed him with all that she had.  
Finally, he pulled away, smiling, "Uh…okay…time out, here, I thought you didn't know…Betty?"  
She just mumbled his name again and pulled him back down to her. He put his hands around her waist and up to her back; then slid them up to the back of her head, thoroughly relishing the fact that Betty was clearly 'enjoying' herself kissing him.  
When they did part, gasping for air, Daniel laughed at her enthusiasm, "Whoa…uh, I think those braces are definitely not slowing YOU down, are they, Betty?"  
She put her hand over her mouth, "Oh, sorry, were they?"  
He shook his head, "No, I'm serious. They didn't bother me. I just meant you uh…seemed to know what you were doing pretty well for someone who supposedly has only had one boyfriend, Betty!"  
She smiled, "Really? It…wasn't bad or anything?"  
He shook his head, brushing her hair back, when it fell down from the wind, "No, it definitely wasn't 'bad', Betty. In fact…I'd say you're quite the natural. Sort of makes me wonder." He played with a strand of her hair.  
"Wonder what?" she whispered.  
"What else you're a natural at."  
Chapter 19: Chapter 19  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 19  
A/N: Okay, not to get your hopes up here (or Daniel's, for that matter), but I am upping the rating here. Hey, it took me 19 chapters this time! And I'm still not saying how 'lucky' Daniel's going to get, yet. But we all know what a smooth talker he can be! LOL!

Daniel had one arm around Betty's waist and had signaled the driver to come pick them up.  
As soon as they slid in the back, he began planting kisses along her neck, making her moan with delight. He whispered, "Betty…are you sure you're okay with uh, dating me?"  
She gave him a look, "Why, because I'm too young? Daniel, don't start. I may be young, but I'm not some schoolgirl you picked up off the playground with pigtails."  
He couldn't resist teasing her, she was too darn adorable, as he played with her hair, "No, you had a ponytail, at least…until the wind and uh…I messed it up, that is, sorry."  
She put her hand up to her hair and shrugged, trying to smooth it down the best she could, with no mirror. "Does it look okay?"  
He nodded, running his hand through it, "It looks great. Very sexy. And not at all like a 'schoolgirl', Betty. I'm sorry I said that. I don't mean to sound condescending. I know you're not…a kid or whatever. I didn't mean it to sound like that. I just sort of feel like I'm taking advantage of you, though."  
"I thought that was your evil plan. Don't tell me you're having second thoughts now, Daniel. Make up your mind, will you? You get a girl all hot and bothered, and then you pull the rug out. Again? Like you did on the phone? Is this some game you play with girls? To get them to beg you or something."  
"Well, okay, now you really make me sound like a dirty old man or something, Betty! Look, I do care about you. A lot. You know that, right?"  
"Daniel…I thought I already made it clear, I'm NOT going to sleep with you tonight, okay? I just said I'd come over to your place. I thought we could you know, make out a little. I admit, I enjoyed kissing you very much.  
I won't say my mind didn't uh…'go there' a little bit, but I told you, I don't sleep around like the girls you've 'dated' before. If you want me, you're going to have to actually date me and have a real relationship with me and wait for me to be comfortable for more.  
I like you, and I like kissing you. But, although I don't agree with Sofia's ideas, I have no intention of just being one of your one night stands. Then what? You wouldn't call me; I'd be hurt and end up hating you, and where would that get us? I like being your friend, too.  
Your problem is, Daniel, that underneath all that smooth player, good-looking sexy guy there really is a very nice man trying to get out. And I think it scares the heck out of you." She pulled away, so that they were an arm's length from one another.  
He smirked, "Smooth player, good-looking, sexy guy, huh? Thanks, Betty. That at least started out sounding like a compliment. How can you make a statement like that end up sounding like a bad thing? You really have a gift for telling me you think I'm hot, then somehow making it seem like a crime or something!"  
"No, it's not a crime. It's just…if you use your charms to lure women into your bed and then toy with their affections, Daniel; that is wrong on so many levels and you know it!  
Personally, I think what Sofia wanted to do to you is just as bad, though. So, I'm feeling a little conflicted now about my new job. I thought it would be great, working for my mentor and now…I don't know."  
"I'm sorry. I'm sure her meeting you as I was kissing you didn't make the best impression on your idol. She should just know, I was the one who initiated it, though. Big surprise, I guess."  
"That's what your mom said."  
"Really? Wow, remind me never to hire my mom as my publicist!"  
She laughed, "She loves you, Daniel. She just told me…you uh, were acting like you had a crush on me. Kind of like you did with some girl in school years ago."  
"A crush? Hmm…well, I think I'd classify this as a little more than a crush, Betty. I get…sweaty palms whenever I'm around you. My heart starts racing when I see you or even hear your voice…It's really annoying!  
I know you're too young for me and you're way too smart for me. We have nothing in common on paper. I mean, hell, the first time we met, I was in my damn underwear, from sleeping with another woman and I swear to God, I thought you might be selling Girl Scout cookies!"  
She laughed, "I see. Well, I hadn't heard the best things about you, either. And although meeting your new boss in his underwear might be a turn on for some girls, I was a bit intimidated, knowing you were with some other girl.  
Some skinny blonde. And there I was, not that skinny, with braces, and glasses, and there as your maid!"  
"I know. But…then when you stayed all night and we got along so well, it was like I knew you forever, Betty. I couldn't stop thinking about you after that and I wanted to be around you all the time ever since.  
I mean, I'm over thirty, and I can count on one hand the number of times a woman has made me feel anything like this way." He saw that she was looking at him skeptically.  
He rolled his eyes, nodding, "I know, I know. This all sounds like some line to get you into my bed. If I thought it would work tonight, I can't say I wouldn't try, either, but…it sounds like you've already made up your mind, anyway that the answer is no. I swear, it's the truth, Betty. I can't lie to you. Even if I wanted to.  
I don't know what's wrong with me and why I feel so totally insane when I'm around you, but…I don't totally hate the feeling. I just hate that I'm suddenly cut off from having sex, apparently, cold turkey. I have to tell you, I'm really good at it, too.  
You know, about that whole idea that you need more experience, Betty. I could be…your teacher. Like a private in-home tutor. Give you lessons. I would give you a great discount." He smirked as he pulled her close again, kissing her collarbone, and sending shivers all up her spine.  
She blushed, "Daniel…wow, that's uh, honestly, really tempting."  
He looked surprised, "Really? Great! When can we start?"  
She bit her bottom lip, "Let me uh, think about it, okay?"  
He shook his head, pulling her face to his and kissing her softly, "No. No thinking, Betty. Because then you'll talk yourself out of 'doing' and doing feels so much better than thinking sometimes. Just…give in.  
For once in your ordered, sensible, smart girl who always does the right thing life, just have fun, and do what feels good, what feels amazing, and what I just know will come very natural to you."  
She took a deep breath, giggling slightly, "Oh, my God, Daniel, you really should teach seminars on this, you are so full of it! But you're uh…really good at trying to wiggle your way into my…"  
He smiled, "Pants? You can say it, Betty. I'm sorry, but yeah, I guess I sort of am. If you thought I was the good guy here, maybe you gave me too much credit. I do want you in my bed. You're really driving me crazy here. I'd be lying if I told you anything else."  
She pulled away slightly, looking at him with surprise, narrowing her eyes, "I see. So now, you're being honest? Wow, you really do feel something for me, don't you, Daniel? And it scares you to not be in control of those feelings."  
He shrugged, "No it doesn't. I'm in control. Just because I admitted to liking being with you, Betty, doesn't mean I'm not... Okay, fine, yes, it scares the hell out me, are you happy? I don't like feeling this way. I like being the one with the control.  
You're young; you're not ready to stay with one guy yet probably, so you might actually end up breaking MY heart and I don't think I like that idea very much, Betty. That's why I've been acting so crazy! I mean, I want you. I really do. You're like no one I've ever met. I know that.  
I also know how good you are for me. You helped me focus on my job and made me feel like I could do something for myself besides be a 'man-slut' for a change. I like that feeling of pride you helped me get.  
But now…I'm scared to death you're going to just leave and go on to the next guy and I'll be left standing there, holding the bag, wanting more and not ever able to get that feeling I have with you back again. I feel like I've become addicted to some new drug and it scares me to death to think of getting cut off from you."  
She smiled, holding his face in her hands, "Wow, that must have been really hard for you to say, Daniel. I love that you're being so open and honest with me.  
It is sort of a turn on to have a guy be so real. So…vulnerable. I guess, maybe we could go to your place and…at least see what happens. But, don't count on…you know. We'll just take it slow, okay?"  
His eyes widened, "Yeah? Okay! Great! Before you change your mind again…Driver, my place, please. A hundred bucks extra for every red light you run."  
Betty laughed, "I…meant…"  
He sighed, looking exasperated, "What? Eventually? Next Christmas? Betty, come on, you're really killing me, here, babe. How about this, we go to my place, sit in front of the fireplace, and just talk, maybe kiss a little, and see what happens? Nothing sinister or scary about that, right?  
We've talked plenty before. We've kissed a little. I think maybe I could just, you know, show you a few things."  
He started to run his hand up the arm of her coat, then rolled his eyes, "I am SO buying you a new coat, woman! This thing is like an innertube! I feel like I'm trying to swim across that East River to you now only this damn thing is c…uh, blocking me!"  
She smiled, blushing, "You'd really do that for me, Daniel? Swim the East River?"  
He pulled off her coat, in frustration and held her in his arms, "Yeah, I really think I would, Betty." He looked down at her, nodding, and smiling, "Maybe when we get home, you could uh, grease me up for my swim."  
She giggled, "We'll see."  
They got out of his town car in a very short time, and Daniel smiled at his driver, "Thanks!" The man shook his head and gave Daniel a glance that spoke volumes. Daniel knew Betty had already made a good impression on the man, like she did on most people, it seemed.  
Daniel smiled, as he put his arm around Betty and led her out of the car, thinking this must be his very lucky night!  
Betty turned to him and said, "Uh, Daniel, not to be a mood killer here, but what about Vincent?"  
He looked at her, seeming puzzled, "Well, if you're suggesting a three way, I'm sorry, Betty. I don't know what you've heard about me, but I like women. Only women. I mean, if you want that Sofia chick or some other girl, maybe I could rally, although I'd really rather be alone with you. At least tonight. But…Vince? I don't think so. He's not my type." He teased.  
She hit him, "Daniel! You're such a pig! No, stupid, I meant…you know. I think he likes me. How do you think I should handle it if he asks me out again? I don't want you to lose him as a client.  
Plus, he's a really nice guy. I don't want to hurt his feelings."  
He shook his head, "Let me handle that, okay? I'll have a little talk with him, man to man. He knows I like you. I think he might make a play for you.  
In fact, I'm sure he will. I suppose I could bring Amanda along or something next time I meet him. Maybe she can uh…distract him."  
"Yeah, well, I know she was a big distraction for you, Daniel, but…"  
"What? Vince has higher standards than me or something? Amanda's not that bad, Betty. You don't need to be jealous." He smiled, kissing her cheek.  
She pushed away, giving him a dirty look, "Isn't that what you told her about me the first time she met me, Daniel?"  
He cleared his throat, looking guilty, "You uh, heard us?"  
"It's a loft, Daniel. Just because you couldn't see me downstairs, doesn't mean the sound didn't carry.  
Yes, I heard you, you idiot!" she hit his arm.  
"Wow, she's really got your number, Daniel!" a man's voice uttered, somewhat teasingly.  
"Becks?" Daniel saw his friend appear on his doorstep from the shadows, "How long have you been waiting here?"  
Becks held up a bottle, "About half of this…ago! So, not long. Maybe ten, fifteen minutes. But, let me in, dude. I always forget where you hide your key, because I know you keep moving it so chicks don't get in and scare you. Although, personally, I don't…"  
Daniel shook his head, sighing, thinking he was going to KILL Becks when he sobered up for having such TERRIBLE timing! But he put his arm around the guy while Betty went around the other side,  
Becks looked down at Betty, making no secret that he was leering at her somewhat tight-fitting sweater. "You're Betty? Daniel's Betty?" the drunk man smiled, "Awe, Daniel, she's really cute! Kinda young, but hot! Score, dude!" He put up his hand to high five Daniel.  
Daniel shook his head at his friend and glanced at Betty mouthing, "I'm SORRY!"  
She smiled, "Nice to meet you, Becks. I've heard so much about you. I thought it couldn't possibly all be true. But, I guess I was wrong. You know, when you sober up, I'll have to introduce you to my new boss. I'm sure you two would get along great!"  
"Is she hot?" he turned towards Betty and she turned away, trying to avoid his liquored breath.  
"Yeah, she's really hot, dude. She looks a little like a slightly older version of Betty." Daniel smiled as he saw Betty narrow her eyes at him.  
"I'm sure she'll LOVE you, Becks!" Betty nodded as they made their way up the steps.  
"Yeah. Well, all the ladies do! Bring her on!" He smiled, flashing his dimple, in his drunken haze as they entered Daniel's loft.  
Chapter 20: Chapter 20  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 20  
As soon as they got on the elevator, Betty was having trouble, "Daniel…please get your friend's hands off me! I know he's drunk, but..."  
Daniel ran to her aid, and shoved Becks roughly against the corner wall of the elevator, "I'm SO sorry, Betty. Are you okay? God, I swear, I am going to MURDER him tomorrow!"  
Daniel held her by her arms, "He didn't hurt you, did he? What was he doing? Or trying to do?"  
She shrugged, "Well, let's just say your friend has gotten a lot further with me than you have so far!" she smiled as his eyebrow shot up,  
"Oh, REALLY? Oh, I am going to enjoy murdering him! I can't tell you enough how sorry I am for this, Betty! Part of me would like to just leave him out on the street right now, I swear. I guess this kind of puts a…big, wet blanket on our plans for tonight."  
He brightened, "You know, I could actually just drop him off here, and let him sleep it off, and we could go somewhere else. Maybe…the Four Seasons or…"  
She gave him a look, "And be on Page Six tomorrow as the Daniel Meade girl of the week? I've already been there, done that, Daniel. Thankfully, they didn't get a good picture of me before. But the same girl, twice? You'll tarnish your reputation!" she teased.  
"Funny, Betty. You know, I don't care about that crap. I understand you're not used to the press.  
But…really, I've learned to ignore it as much as possible and just live my life. If I were whatever the male equivalent to Mother Theresa is, they would still find something to trash about me. So, I don't even let it bother me anymore what they say.  
They're just making up whatever trash they think is going to get them the most hits on their websites or viewers to their little crap show. Like that thing you said your new boss was planning on doing to me.  
Were you serious about introducing her to Becks? I guess that would serve him right. I don't think she stands a chance in hell at getting HIM to propose in sixty days or six hundred years! There's no freaking way!"  
"I don't know, Daniel. She's pretty clever."  
"Well, I don't see myself having fallen for whatever crazy scheme she had planned for me, either. I mean, I did survive her taking her top off in front of me without proposing marriage! I can't believe her thinking she is so hot she could get any guy to fall for her that fast! That's a little…arrogant, don't you think?"  
Betty rolled her eyes, "You can knock it off, Daniel, I know you think she's gorgeous; you suggested we have a three-way with her and you've brought her up several times, so you're not fooling anybody with your denial. I know she's sexy. I'm not blind or stupid."  
He grinned, "You're sexy, too, Betty. You really have no need to be jealous of her, believe me. She's kind of a ball buster. But who knows, maybe working for her will be a good thing for you. You can learn some stuff from her, I guess."  
"Yes, but what will I be learning, Daniel? How to use sex to manipulate men? I think the bloom is off the rose with my idolizing her. I'd much rather emulate someone like your mom."  
He smiled, "I like that you and my mom get along so well, Betty. Mom has good taste. Her liking you so much makes me know even more what a great girl you are."  
The elevator had stopped some time ago. They heard Becks moaning, and holding his head, then looking up, "Hey, Daniel. Daniel's friend."  
"It's Betty. The woman you just had your hands all over!" Daniel shook his head in frustration and put Becks arm around him, "Come on, you jerk. Let's put you to bed."  
"Awe, Daniel! Dude! I know you say that to all the girls, sweetie, but I never thought I'd hear you say it to me!" He grinned and batted his eyelashes.  
Daniel glared at him and muttered, through clenched teeth, "Shut up! You know how much I hate you right now, dude?"  
Betty followed along; guiding Daniel to his living room, opening the door, and helping him to get Beck inside and unceremoniously throw his inebriated friend onto his couch.  
"There! Sleep it off! And I better not find out you threw up on anything. Here! Use this…" He put a trash can next to the couch, and threw a blanket over Becks, rolling his eyes as he turned on his heel.  
He looked at Betty, who was yawning. "Oh, Betty, I'm sorry. You must be really tired. Look, I can sleep on the chair out here; you should get some rest. My bedroom is clean. I had this fantastic maid service, and the girl who worked for me was awesome! She did a great job. She was really hot, too!  
I don't know what I'm going to do now, though. She was too smart and got another job already."  
Betty smiled, "Well, I guess you could just learn to clean up after yourself, Daniel. I could…teach you. It's really not that hard."  
"You wanna bet?" He smirked.  
She hit his arm, "Daniel!"  
"I know, Betty. You could teach me how to not be such a slob and I'll teach you…uh, what I know."  
"I'll have to think about that one, Daniel. How about for now, we just…kiss goodnight and go to sleep? Alone."  
"Sounds kind of boring. But, I understand you're tired. How about…I let dufus here sleep it off, then kick him out as soon as the sun comes up?  
Tomorrow's Saturday; you can sleep in, then we can spend the day together. I'll take you shopping to get you something else to wear if you want and we can go do whatever you'd like here in Manhattan. But, I promise, we'll keep it clean, okay? We could go skating, maybe. I hear you, loud and clear. This is a real relationship and you want to take things slow."  
He walked her upstairs and handed her a pair of shorts and one of his Harvard tees.  
"Thanks. So, what happened to me being too young and inexperienced? I haven't grown up that much in a week, Daniel. Is it just the braces and the contacts?"  
He shrugged, "It's not that, so much as…I realized the minute I saw you with Vincent tonight that if I wait around for you to 'grow up', you're going to do that growing up with some other guy and I don't think I could just sit back and watch that, Betty.  
I don't want to see some other guy break your heart. If you do get tired of me and end up breaking mine…so be it. I'd rather spend what time I can with you until you get sick of me than stand by and kick myself because I let you get away."  
She smiled and reached up to kiss him on the cheek, "See, that's what I'm talking about, Daniel. When you say stuff like that, it lets me know 'good Daniel' is in there, somewhere under the 'player guy' Daniel façade. You just have to keep reminding yourself that you really ARE that nice guy, and stop…acting like-him!" She pointed downstairs to Becks, snoring on the couch.  
Daniel laughed, "Yeah. I don't want to end up sad and drunk on his doorstep one day, that's for sure. Becks is okay, Betty. I mean, well, maybe not on the surface. I know he's a real womanizer, but hell, so am I, so I definitely can't cast stones too much at the guy. I do know what you mean, though. I'd like to try being 'good guy Daniel', if you'll help me.  
Especially if that includes uh…being your boyfriend? Because if it doesn't, I don't know, I might have to revert back to being player guy Daniel. I mean, hell, you said Becks already got further with you than I have! What did he do, exactly? I think I deserve at least as much action as my drunk friend, Betty!" he teased, as he started to move his hands from her waist downward.  
She pulled him away, "Never mind, Daniel. But if you're serious about the boyfriend thing, that sounds…really nice. I'd like that very much." She smiled up at him.  
He bent his head down so that his lips were right next to hers, "You know, Betty. If you're my girlfriend, even if we take things slow…that does mean we'll have to have sex, eventually.  
You already told me you and Walter had slept together, right? So you're not saving yourself for marriage?"  
She blinked hard and swallowed, finding it hard to speak; he was invading her space so much. She managed to squeak out, "I know. I mean, yes, we did and no, I'm not necessarily waiting to get married, Daniel. But…um…well, you're right, of course. I guess, if we dated, then eventually we would you know, do that."  
He held her by her shoulders and kissed her passionately, leaving her completely breathless and utterly speechless, and grinned, "Good! Damn glad to hear it, Betty. Sleep well, sweetie. I'll see you in the morning, okay?" He patted her behind as he bounded happily downstairs.  
She nodded, somewhat dumbfounded at what had just happened and went into the bathroom to change into his shirt and shorts. She leaned over the railing to him, seeing he had already stripped off his shirt and pants, so she bit her lip, taking a deep breath when she saw him, and called down, "Daniel?"  
He smiled, looking up at her, "You look really cute in my shirt, Betty."  
"Thanks." She blushed, "Um, do you have an extra toothbrush?"  
He nodded, "Oh, yeah, sorry. I forgot to show you. Hang on. I'll be right back up." He hurried back up the stairs and almost ran into her, "Sorry!"  
She gulped again, looking at his bare chest in her face, "Oh, it's…okay. Uh…toothbrush?"  
He nodded, smiling down at her, then showed her the drawer next to his sink, "Sorry, I keep the spare ones over here. I guess you never saw them before when you were in here."  
She shook her head and smiled, "Thanks, Daniel. Um, do you need any blankets or pillows?"  
He looked around, "Yeah, I've got some in my closet. I'll get them. Thanks for thinking of me. I don't want to get cold down there and I'm sure not going to snuggle with Becks to keep warm."  
She smiled at him, "I feel bad, putting you out of your bed, Daniel."  
He grinned, "I'll survive. Besides, even I can see you need time to get used to…me, Betty. I know I come with a lot of baggage. Recovering alcoholic mothers who show up unannounced, drunken friends who turn up totally uninvited and unwanted, crazy press following us and taking our picture.  
Having a girl here when you first met me, and me answering the door in my boxers. Then, I show up at your house the next day, walking in on you naked!"  
She bit her bottom lip, as he stood next to her, "That's true, Daniel. It is going to take a lot to get used to dating you. And it's not all good.  
But, along with all those things you just mentioned, I also get to see you, and your great smile, and your gorgeous eyes, and your um, really nice body, your sexy voice, and your great sense of humor and just…how sweet and kind and encouraging you are to me!"  
He grinned, as she placed her hands on his chest, and reached up to kiss him, pulling him down to her level. He fell backwards, against the wall, and laughed, "Wow! Talk about a quick study. I told you that you were a natural, Betty.  
By the way, thank you for all that you just said. I didn't even hear a qualifier in there that time. That sounded like an honest-to-God compliment! I don't quite know how to take it when you say stuff like that.  
You're pretty amazing yourself, Betty. Which reminds me, if I'm going to actually leave you alone tonight; I'd better get out of here right now. Because if you kiss me one more time like that; I can't be held responsible for what I'll do to you, girl." He quickly kissed her on the forehead and smiled as he bounded down the stairs, calling out, "Sweet dreams."  
She nodded, "You, too." She sighed, thinking she wasn't going to be able to sleep very well, with him downstairs. She had to admit, she was almost relieved Becks had shown up, because Daniel was well…pretty hard to resist.  
She knew herself enough to know that now that he had told her he wanted to have an actual relationship with her after all, it was only a matter of time before she succumbed to his charms. He knew it, too, of course.  
And she knew that he knew it. Now she was confused. But she really didn't want to just jump into bed with Daniel, no matter how charming and sexy and handsome and sweet he was.  
She sighed; flopping onto the bed. His bed. It was so soft and big. She felt selfish, hogging this huge, comfortable bed while Daniel scrunched up in a chair downstairs.  
There was plenty of room for both of them. To sleep, of course. Right! Betty, you know that would last all of two seconds. She had just attacked him after he handed her a toothbrush, for goodness sake! If she suggested he come up there to sleep in the bed with her, there was no way he wouldn't take it as an invitation to have sex, she thought.  
She yawned, and drifted off to sleep a lot easier than she thought she might. She woke up at about eight thirty, and peaked downstairs to see Daniel and Becks both still sleeping soundly.  
She had texted Hilda before she went to bed, telling her she was spending the night with a 'friend' in Manhattan. She knew better than to actually talk or even leave a voice message for her sister, or she would have instantly been able to tell Betty was lying. She had, after all, snuck out of the house at midnight and never returned.  
She jumped into the shower, taking her clothes with her and smiling, thinking how much fun she and Daniel would have, spending the day together in the city. She was just about done rinsing the shampoo out of her hair, when she heard a noise. Was Daniel coming in to join her?  
She freaked out, not really sure if she was ready for that. She didn't mean to, but when the shower curtain pulled back, she screamed without thinking, then opened her eyes to see a wide eyed Becks standing in his boxers.  
Betty pulled the curtain closed quickly and screamed, "Get out!"  
"Sorry, gorgeous. I thought you were…where the hell is Daniel, anyway? He wasn't downstairs either. Hey, uh, what's your name, gorgeous? I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."  
She quickly finished getting the soap out of her hair and eyes, and turned off the water. "It's…Betty. We sort of met last night, when you were drunk. Can you please get out, Becks? I'd like to get dressed, if you don't mind."  
"Sure, sorry, Betty. I'll uh, let you finish. I guess Daniel slipped out to grab some coffee or something thinking we'd both still be sleeping. Uh, let's not tell him about this little accident, okay?"  
"Too late, buddy!" Daniel stood in the bedroom doorway, holding three coffees and a bag.  
"You know, Becks, I can honestly say I've never been LESS happy to see you! What the hell are you doing?  
It's not enough you have to totally screw up what could have been a nice night for us, now you're terrorizing my girlfriend in the shower? Here, I think maybe you should take your coffee to go, dude! Before I'm tempted to throw you over that railing." He handed him one of the coffees and put the other two down on the dresser.  
Becks nodded, grinning, "Girlfriend, huh? Are you serious? Like… actual girlfriend? That's cool. Look, Daniel, for what it's worth; dude, I AM sorry for cramping your style last night.  
I'd be lying if I said I was totally sorry about seeing your lady in the shower, but…I am sorry for uh, you know, being a pain in the ass. Let me make it up to both of you. I'll take you both out to dinner somewhere sometime; my treat, okay? Uh…Betty? I'm really sorry, okay, honey?"  
"Goodbye!" Betty yelled, angrily, still extremely embarrassed and upset with him.  
"Okay, I know the way out. Sorry, Daniel! Really, really sorry, dude. Uh, when you're speaking to me again, call me, okay?"  
Daniel glared at him, "Yeah, okay. Don't hold your breath, DUDE! I'm pretty pissed right now. You see what you kept me from last night? Instead, I ended up sleeping in that chair downstairs, listening to YOU snore!"  
Becks made a face, "Say no more, Daniel. I had way too much to drink last night, obviously. But, I promise, I'll make it up to you both!"  
Daniel smiled briefly, "Well, you can do that now by getting the hell out of here. Betty and I have plans."  
Becks grinned, "I bet you do! Have fun, Daniel. Don't do anything I wouldn't do!"  
After a few minutes, Betty came out, dressed, but with her hair in a towel. She looked around, "Is he gone?"  
Daniel smiled, sitting on a chair, holding out a cinnamon twist and a coffee for her. "All gone! It's just us, now, Betty. Sorry about that, sweetie! You know, the more I think about it, I do believe introducing Becks to your new boss will be JUST what he needs!"  
Chapter 21: Chapter 21  
Maid for Each Other  
Chapter 21  
After spending the day together, shopping, and ice skating at Rockefeller Center, then going out for a late lunch, Daniel reluctantly took Betty back to Queens.  
"Daniel, I left my house at midnight. Hilda is SO going to know something is up. I just texted her that I was spending the night at a 'friend's' place in Manhattan. She probably thinks it was Christine. But…I'm a terrible liar."  
"So what, Betty? It's not like you're eighteen or something. You've been out all night before, right? What's the big deal? You're an adult."  
"I know, Daniel. But, you know how you said you don't worry about the paparazzi anymore, or trying to please them because you couldn't if you tried? And how you've always tried to please your father, but felt like you would never compete with your brother? Well, it's different with my family.  
They are SO nosey! They love me and support me, but…they are always telling me what to do. At first, both Hilda and my father tried to get me to just take Walter back, even though he CHEATED on me!  
I think they just figured he was the best I was going to get or something, I don't know. But, honestly, meeting you and talking to your mom helped me see I could do so much better!"  
He smiled, "You mean-me?"  
She blushed, realizing that was exactly what she did mean, although she really hadn't meant to say it like that, at least, not out loud. "Well…yeah, I guess so, sort of. I actually just meant, you know, a guy who DOESN'T cheat on me!"  
He nodded, "Oh, I see. Yeah, I definitely get that. You're right, Betty. That's total crap that that stupid guy did that to you. He's some local guy, right?"  
She nodded, "Right. He works at Pro-buy. He kept trying to give me discounts or buying me batteries to get back with me after Gina dumped him, after he dumped ME!"  
He laughed, "I'm sorry. That's not really funny, I suppose."  
Betty shrugged, "It kind of is, actually. Except…you know, he was just my first, that's all."  
"First, and…only?"  
She blushed, "Right. I haven't dated all that much, you know. Braces or…before that, terrible teeth, and glasses don't tend to put you very high on the social calendar at high school or even Queen's College."  
He nodded, running the back of his hand down the sleeve of the red wool coat he had insisted on buying her. "Well, I think things are about to change for you, finally, Betty.  
People like that stupid ex of yours will see how special you are and that he wasn't nearly good enough for you, anyway."  
She smiled and leaned over, kissing him sweetly, "You're sweet, Daniel. Oh, and…thanks for the dress and the coat. You really didn't have to buy me anything, you know."  
He grinned, "Hey, after getting mauled and ogled by my stupid 'friend', I figured it was the least I could do, Betty. Besides, I did sort of kidnap you last night."  
She shook her head, putting her hand on his cheek, "No, you didn't. Daniel, I had a fantastic time. Last night was amazing! It was really fun singing with you and talking and everything on the bridge. I'll never forget that night as long as I live."  
He put his hand over hers, "Me either; Betty. Remember what I said, anytime you want to meet me there, five am, whatever, just call me, and I'll be there."  
She broke out into that smile he was already starting to love seeing. It made his day. She smiled so broadly, so purely, and with such enthusiasm, He found it contagious. He found he couldn't be down once he saw that smile of hers.  
That smile that actually made him believe anything was possible. Even something Daniel Meade had long ago stopped believing in, a happy ending for him. Mainly because Betty made it clear she believed in him.  
He squeezed her hand and she grinned again, squeezing back and running out of the town car. She turned and waved, "Thanks for a wonderful night and day, Daniel!"  
He nodded, "You bet; I'll call you later. Goodnight, Betty."  
She ran inside, feeling like she had just come back from a great dream. She didn't want it to end. She slowly opened the door, almost wishing she could have stayed with Daniel longer.  
When she was with him, he made her feel beautiful, like a princess, like…she could do anything! She wished she could feel that way all the time.  
When she didn't see anyone in the living room, she walked back to the kitchen and was somewhat surprised to see Vincent there. "Vince! Hi! What are you doing here?"  
He shrugged, and gave her a sly grin, "I just was in the neighborhood, visiting my old man and thought I'd see how your poor little feet were recovering.  
But, I understand from your sister Hilda, here that you ended up going back to Manhattan and spent the night with a girlfriend in the city. I see you did some shopping while you were there, huh?"  
Betty grabbed one of her father's empanadas and shoved it in her mouth, nodding, "Mmhmm."  
He smiled at Hilda, and put out his hand, "It was a pleasure to meet you, Miss Hilda. I guess I'd better get going. I just wanted to come by and see if you'd like to try the dancing thing, again.  
I know of a great club downtown we could check out if you're not too tired from your time in the city with your friend."  
Betty didn't have a clue what to tell Vince. She hadn't promised Daniel she would go out with him tonight, but that was only because he figured she would need to rest after staying up all night with him and not really getting to sleep in this morning.  
"I…um…I'm not sure, Vincent. I am sort of worn out, I'm afraid. Maybe I could get a rain check?"  
"Oh, Betty! You're such a party pooper! You're seriously going to turn down a chance to go dancing in the city because you and Christine went out last night and did a little shopping this afternoon? Girl, that is so lame! I swear, if I got asked to go dancing…"  
"Well, hey, Hilda, if Betty isn't in the mood, maybe I could take you to the club? You don't mind, do you, Betty?"  
Betty shook her head, "No. Of course not, Vince. I think Hilda deserves a night out. She hasn't been out in ages."  
"Thanks, mami! You make me sound like an old lady or something. Vince already knows I'm a single mom. You don't have to make me out to be an old fuddy- duddy like you!"  
"I'm sorry, Hilda. I didn't mean to do that, I promise."  
Hilda looked at Vincent, her eyes full of excitement. "Are you sure you are okay with this, Vince?"  
He nodded, trying to be discreet in how much he was eying Hilda's low-cut top and tight jeans, "No problem, girl! I'd love to cut the rug with a former Miss Queensboro High!"  
"Well, I never really…"  
"Oh, but you would have won, Hilda!" Betty seemed to be rushing her sister off.  
Ignacio came in with Justin. "Hey, mijah! There you are! Did you have fun with your friend? What's her name, Christine?"  
Betty grabbed another empanada; nervously eating to avoid her concern that they would be able to tell she was lying. She intended to tell them about how things had changed with Daniel, of course. Just not in front of Vincent.  
She was secretly hoping things might develop between Vince and her sister, so she wouldn't feel so guilty. He seemed to like Hilda. They appeared to have been having a very pleasant conversation for some time in the kitchen before Betty came home.  
As Vince waited, Hilda ran upstairs to quickly change, almost knocking down Justin and Ignacio.  
Vincent put his hands in his pockets, "So, you're sure you don't mind me taking your sister out tonight, Betty?"  
"No, she loves to dance, and she'll…"  
"That's not what I meant, Betty. I meant …you know. Wait. Something's different with you. You seem…really happy or something. Tell me; honestly, what's the deal with you and Daniel Meade?  
Are you sure you two are 'just friends'? Because I swear, if looks could kill, I think he woulda murdered me the other night as I lead you away."  
Betty wondered if she had a sign plastered on her forehead or something. "I have to tell you something, Vince. Actually, I…think maybe you're right about Daniel and I. But, please don't tell my sister. She's sort of overprotective, and really nosey." She talked softly, hoping her nephew was upstairs and her father was too pre-occupied listening to his telenovellas to hear her.  
Vince nodded, "Yeah, well, I noticed the car pull up earlier and saw you kissing the guy inside, so….it didn't take an Einstein to figure out something had changed with you, Betty. So…you were actually out with him all night? Not with your 'girlfriend', right?"  
Betty blushed, "Yes. But, we just went out to eat, then I did stay at his loft, but nothing happened. He slept on the chair downstairs. His friend was there when we got there and was really drunk, so Daniel let him sleep on the couch."  
Vince raised an eyebrow, "I see! So, you and Daniel and his friend all spent the night at his loft in the city? Betty, I never would have thought you were that kind of girl!" he teased.  
She reddened and stuttered, "I know it sounds really bad, but nothing happened between Daniel and me other than…"  
He put his hand up, shaking his head, "Betty, seriously, you DON'T owe me any explanations, okay? I get it.  
You didn't realize how you felt about the guy at first. He obviously had the hots for you all along and seeing you with me totally put him over the edge, so he came and staked his claim, right?" he smiled.  
She nodded, "I think so, yes. Thank you for being so understanding, Vince."  
He shrugged, as she hugged him, and whispered, "Well, I probably wouldn't be quite so forgiving if it wasn't for your hot sister, Betty!"


End file.
